brittanniemckennatravis - Fellow Travelers

F E L L O W T R A V E L E R S

COSTUME DESIGNER

Within the story of 'Fellow Travelers,' each scene had a shift in the world's locale as well as the characters' occupations, occasions and more. The director's concept and costume design reflected the mode of dress to the specific change of space.

The following production photos are organized accordingly.

OFFICE - WORKWEAR.

AFTER HOURS/NIGHT LIFE.

HOME LIFE (e.g., wedding, maternity).

HOLIDAY PARTY - FORMAL ATTIRE.

INTERROGATION.

MILITARY.

FUNERAL - MOURNING ATTIRE.

"Fellow Travelers" at University of Cincinnati's College-Conservatory of Music is a double-cast production.

DESIGN PROCESS.

In Fellow Travelers, the costume design concept was based on the perspective of the lead protagonist, Timothy Laughlin. Each costume design was a visual snapshot of the character based on Tim's point-of-view. 'What is catching Tim's eye about his environment or the people?' As an aspiring writer, 'What does Tim strongly remember about each person he encounters?' 'What is holding Tim's attention at the time and now?' With this, I had to think about each design from the lens of Tim which included in-depth analysis and an understanding of each character's development in the plot.

The director was inspired by the 1998 film "Pleasantville," and the transition of black-and-white to color. In addition, I was inspired by the costume designs (CD: Donna Zakowska) in the Emmy-winning Amazon Prime series "The Marvelous Ms. Maisel." With a gray-scale scenic design, there was the opportunity and challenge to create significant meaning using clothing for the characters. For the costume design, the aesthetic goal was to show a variation of people who live true-to-themselves (real identity), live in a facade, or suppress their personality to fit the norm. To achieve this, I used color symbolism (i.e., blue for comfort/security, pink for femininity, white for suppression).

Overall, to abstractly capture the picturesque ideal of the 1950s in Gregory Spears's modern American opera Fellow Travelers, the use of period-accurate silhouettes, controlled-color symbolism, and subtle use of patterns and motifs were used to evoke feelings of individuality vs. fashion conformity based on the protagonist's point-of-view.

INSPIRATIONAL SONG(S): "Scene 1a, Park in Dupont Circle - LIVE", Composer: Gregory Spears

Arrangement By: Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

*Link will redirect to YouTube clip with song.

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TESTIMONIALS.

Quote from Audience Member:

"This [production of Fellow Travelers] was a milestone of quality artistry and refined clarity."

Kenneth Shaw, Professor of Voice at College-Conservatory of Music (CCM)

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