Studies in Costume & Performance - Costume and Fairy Tales, Dec 2022

Costume and its contribution to a stage production is still a less frequently researched field in theatre studies. Yet it plays an important role in the performance of a role in both theatre and stage dance. Using the fairy-tale character of Puss in Boots in the ballet Die goldene Märchenwelt (first performed in Vienna, 1893), which is very well-known not only in the German-speaking world, the extent to which the recognizability of the character is supported by the costume is examined in this article. Costume designer Franz Gaul (1837–1906) was inspired not only by the various fairy-tale versions, but also by a large number of illustrations and stage adaptations. The source for the costume analysis here is a series of photographs of the dancer Wilhelmine Rathner (1863–1913) playing Puss in Boots archived at the Theatermuseum in Vienna. Through this medium a second level of investigation arises, namely that of the photographic (self-)staging of the desirable woman through costume and pose in a complicated interplay of textures and distances. This staging gains another – potentially eroticizing – level through the conception of the role of Puss in Boots as a breeches role.

Alice through the Looking Glass (2016) the sequel to Alice in Wonderland (2010) reconfigures Carroll’s tyrannical dictator the Queen of Hearts/Red Queen. The film offers insights into her formative years in the style of Maleficent (2014) and Cruella (2021), explaining the circumstances that have shaped this formidable diva. Fictional character transformations are often signposted through style and this study addresses the role that costume design plays in the reimagining of this monarch. Clothing and adornment frequently highlight plot and character transitions in fairy-tale narratives and the significance of Colleen Atwood’s ‘organic armour’ garment in fabricating a more nuanced shading for Carroll’s gaudy caricature will be examined. The Red Queen’s affinity with abrasive textures in Carroll’s description of her as ‘thorny’ is a catalyst for fusions and juxtapositions of both smooth and textured materials in this dress, amplifying the interplay between organic and inorganic surfaces in this film. Alice through the Looking Glass and Atwood’s design specifically, not only serves as a conduit for the Red Queen’s transitioning identity, but also provides a platform to appraise ideologies inherent in material surfaces within fairy-tale narratives.

This article presents a close reading of two costume designs from Takahashi Rumiko’s Inuyasha series (manga 1996–2008), and details the methods used to create a pair of cosplay costumes. It will explore how character designs are imbued with identity and narrative foreshadowing. Throughout this article, reference will be made to fan scholarship in addition to more academic sources. As Matt Hills points out with his model of the ‘scholar-fan’, fans are often conducting research and work that academics have yet to address, and this is often the case with anime fandom. Further, my work on cosplay treats fan-constructed costumes as an act of fan translation akin to other activities such as ‘scanlations’, that is scanned translations of manga, comics or graphic novels.

If consciously wearing perfume is part of an identity construction process, then could a specifically designed olfactory costume affect the interactions of those wearing it with their environment or perhaps encourage performative behaviour? If so, could narrative components or patterns emerge from this olfactory experience? Perfume might often be described or advertised as enchanting, eerie, charming or alluring among others, scents however are rarely mentioned in fairy and folk tales, the realm of enchantment par excellence. In an effort to activate the human body and the surrounding air with a potential for narrative and explore the possibility of a relationship between scent, storytelling and performativity, I developed [___], an olfactory art piece that wafted through Athens, Greece over a period of four months (September–December 2021). [___] is a scent, given to twenty participants to wear, monitor and optionally document their reactions and those of their environment spontaneously. Following the experiment, discussions with the participants revealed compelling experiences and stories, performative behaviours, fictional accounts, characters and situations at the intersection of the mundane, the creative and the magical. [___], is a redolent experiment that explores potential relationships between bodies, smell, agency, costume, performance and (re)enchantment within the contemporary urban setting.

Review of: Scenography and Art History: Performance Design and Visual Culture, Astrid Von Rosen and Viveka Kjellmer (eds) (2021)

London: Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 256 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-35020-444-7, h/bk, £85.00