By Sam McDonald 

如果你需要的衣服能唤起一种特别耀眼、迷幻的18岁的感觉th 世纪法国,你不能只是开车去商场或在网上订购东西.

你最好的办法可能是一英寸一英寸地捡起针线, gusset by gusset — stitch them together yourself.

这是一群勤奋的最靠谱的网赌软件学生和服装设计教员梅雷迪思·马古恩在为《最靠谱的网赌软件》做准备时施展的魔术,” an ODURep play opening Thursday, Feb. 15, at University Theatre.

Written by Lauren Gunderson, “The Revolutionists” is described as, “a fast-paced dark comedy about art and activism, feminism and terrorism, and how we actually go about changing the world.”

Set during the French Revolution, 故事聚焦于四位女性,她们一边争取进步,一边试图逃脱刽子手的魔掌. 其中三位女性是历史人物:奥林普·德古热、夏洛特·科戴和玛丽·安托瓦内特. The fourth, Marianne Angelle, is a fictional, 被描述为加勒比自由战士的合成人物. 海地革命发生在1791年至1804年之间,与法国的动乱重叠.

In the ODU production, 角色们穿着手工制作的长袍和紧身胸衣, knee breeches and petticoats. 创造这些精致的外观是一个巨大但令人满意的缝纫挑战.

“We went for a fantasy dreamscape, but with a sense of modernity,” Magoun said, 描述她与该剧导演合作创造的风格, Kate Clemons. “我们想要的衣服要符合那个时代的轮廓和感觉.”

他们还想注入一些现代气息. Magoun从Alexander McQueen的设计中获得灵感, Moschino, and Vivienne Westwood, for example. 颜色包括紫红色、绿色、金色、粉色和蓝色,它们像霓虹灯一样发光.

“这就像一个朋克摇滚、洛可可酸梦,”马戈恩笑着说,“一个万花筒. 这是一种华丽的富裕,但它被周围的世界所包围.

“这四位女性生活在一个极其动荡的时代.”

四个学生和老师站在一起合影

“革命者”服装团队的成员在马厩剧院车间内摆姿势. Pictured, left to right, are Evalee Merritt, Kari Wilson, Senior Lecturer in Costume Design Meredith Magoun, Mya Houston, and Marshall de Doelder. Photo by Sam McDonald

导演克莱蒙斯对服装的搭配感到很高兴. “The costumes are bold and brazen, 也代表了她们所穿衣服的每一个复杂的女人,” she wrote. “观众会为他们神魂颠倒的.”

To accomplish this feat of stitchery, Magoun和一个由六名ODU学生组成的团队一起不懈地缝纫,这些学生要么是戏剧研究项目的一部分,要么是志愿者. “We did a mountain of work,” Magoun said.

来自汉普顿的戏剧艺术系大一新生卡莉·威尔逊(Kari Wilson)接了很多工作. 其中之一是塑形胸衣所需的塑料或金属“鲸骨”. “我不得不去布景店借了一把剪刀把它们剪下来,”她说. “I used a big grinder for the metal ones. I wore eye protection. Sparks were flying.”

而她从中学就开始参与戏剧表演了, 威尔逊在“革命者”中的工作代表了她第一次服装冒险和她第一次真正的缝纫经验.

“我从从未接触过缝纫机到帮助制作一件几个世纪前的衣服,” Wilson said. “That’s a big leap.”

威尔逊描述了在服装店里的同志情谊, Magoun根据每个学生的技能水平分配任务. Many of the pieces were group projects.

威尔逊惊叹于马戈恩的设计和人际交往能力.

“She’s amazing. 我从来不会因为不知道什么而感到被人指指点点。. “一开始,我告诉她我不知道如何使用缝纫机,但我仍然可以帮助她? She said, ‘Of course. 从你能做的事情开始,逐渐做到你不能做的事情.’”

Meanwhile, Mya Houston, 来自南波士顿的游戏设计与评论专业大二学生, Virginia, came to the shop with lots of sewing experience. 

Woman sewing clothes

Mya Houston, a student from South Boston, Virginia, 在制作服装的早期阶段使用图案. Photo by Sam McDonald

Houston started sewing in middle school, 灵感来自她的祖母,她会做从窗帘到小毛绒动物的一切东西. “I’ve been making stuff ever since,” Houston said.

One day, 她在君主路上漫步经过马厩剧院, the historic building which houses the costume shop, and noticed the sewing machines, fabric and mannequins.

“It intrigued me,” she said. “我联系了梅雷迪思,问她我能不能帮忙制作服装.” The answer was, of course, an emphatic, “yes.”

作为一名志愿者,休斯顿说她喜欢在剧院周围帮忙幕后工作. She also likes learning new sewing techniques.

缝纫和游戏设计之间是否存在联系?

“它们满足了我创作的欲望,”休斯顿说. “我喜欢把我想象的东西变成现实. Both fit that perfectly.”

The director of “The Revolutionists,” Kate Clemons, 预计这部剧会吸引学生观众.

“它具有视觉设计中所有时代作品的乐趣, but the sound of the play is entirely post-modern,” Clemons wrote. “语言很现代,节奏很快,就像《最靠谱的网赌软件》(Gilmore Girls)中的一集,我们的场景是由流行歌曲的混搭连接起来的.

“我知道我们的制作可以跨越新旧之间的界限,为我们的观众创造一种容易接近和具有挑战性的体验,并为我们的学生演员和设计师提供教育.”

 

ODURep presents “The Revolutionists”

What: 由劳伦·冈德森编剧,凯特·克莱蒙斯导演的戏剧. 演员有瑞茜·欧文、蕾拉·布莱恩特、安吉丽娜·帕奎因和艾比·普雷吉策.

When: February 15-25, 2024. Feb. 15-17 and 22-24, 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 25, 2:00 p.m. 

Where: Goode Theatre on Monarch Way at 46th Street

Tickets: http://bit.ly/ODUArtsTix