Costume Observation Klara – Team HEMASU

Delirious Jena – Des Lebens Überfluss | Theaterhaus Jena

Text/Direction: Hannes Weiler / Stage: Florian Dietrich / Costumes: Lena Hiebel / Dramaturgy: Friederike Weidner

Focus on Actress: Johanna Berger

What is the costume?

  • dress/skirt and top
  • dress has a hoop skirt underneath
  • wide skirt -> takes up alot of space
  • skirt fabric is gathered
  • skirt has a train
picture: Susann Luge
picture: Susann Luge
  • top without sleeves
  • very tight, almost like a corset
  • top ornamented with lace
  • a zipper in the back -> can’t undress herself
  • dirty white color
  • skirt possibly made out of cotton
  • shoes: used high heels closed leather corpus, with canvas, worn out, with shoelaces
picture: Susann Luge
picture: Susann Luge
  • black tights
  • no jewelry, no makeup, no nail polish, tired eyes, very pale
picture: Susann Luge
picture: Susann Luge
  • french braided hair in the back with a lot of loose strands hanging into her face

 

Which impression does it create?

How underlines the costume the the role the actor/actress is playing?

How supports it the actor/actress?

  • wife of Heinrich
  • impression: run down wedding dress
  • looks shabby, probably has only this dress, wears it all the time
  • too long for everday use
  • more simple -> simple fabric(cotton) but intricate fashion of the dress -> could mean she is coming wealthy family but choose poverty deliberatley
  • stiffness of the dress reflects her minimal movements and gestures
  • probably has never been a housewife

How is the development of the costume during the piece?

  • apart from stepping on her train, almost no interaction with her costume by the other actors

How does it change in relation to the actor’s/actress’ role?

What other support is needed?

  • no change of the dress during the piece
  • no clothing was added(except for the video part)
  • when she is shot down the dress becomes flat and looses it’s volume
picture: Susann Luge
picture: Susann Luge

How influences the costume the posture & movement of the actor/actress?

How interacts the actor/actress with his/her costume?

  • the stiff dress forces her into a stiff posture -> includes having her hands on the dress all the time to be ready for movement
picture: http://www.theaterhaus-jena.de/blog/fotogalerie-delirious-jena-c-joachim-dette/
picture: http://www.theaterhaus-jena.de/blog/fotogalerie-delirious-jena-c-joachim-dette/
  • never turned towards the person she is talking to only turns her head in their direction
picture: Susann Luge
picture: Susann Luge
  • never sits down only crouches down
picture: Susann Luge
picture: Susann Luge
  • she needs to pull up her dress in order to walk, otherwise she would step on it
picture: http://www.theaterhaus-jena.de/blog/fotogalerie-delirious-jena-c-joachim-dette/
picture: http://www.theaterhaus-jena.de/blog/fotogalerie-delirious-jena-c-joachim-dette/
  • crouched down to grab the skirt before moving
  • always tried to grab a ring of the hoopskirt
  • lifted skirt higher for running
  • skirt nice for sweeping eggs and straw
  • if one hand carries something the other hand holds up the skirt
  • if both hands are full she needs to kick the skirt forward to be able to walk