Stanislavski Post 3, 4 & 5

It's in the very early 30s at the peak of winter, late evening. I think there would be a busy and exciting atmosphere, everyone would be glamed up ready for the night ahead. I imagine there to be a lot of lights from all the clubs and shows going on and everybody rushing around, keen to get to there destination. The Emcee is on stage at The Kit Kat Club, he is introducing the show and welcoming the guests. 

We only ever see The Emcee on stage, we have no idea to who he really is off stage and what he does when he's not performing. It's unlikely that he would have had a makeup artist in that time period, every performer would have probably made themselves up. I think that before he went on stage he would have been getting himself ready and just chatting away to everyone backstage. I imagine him to be just as bubbly off stage minus the makeup! 


"There is no curtain. As the audience enters the theatre, the stage is bare and dark. Street lamps on both sides of the stage recede dimly into the distance. A large mirror hanging centre stage reflects the auditorium, thus allowing the audience to see itself. A spiral staircase is on the stage- left side of the proscenium arch. In the darkness, a large sign is illuminated- letter by letter. It reads: CABARET. Then it dissappears."

Dreyfus, A. (unknown). the 1930's. Available: http://www.pinterest.com/hanelore/the-1930-s/. Last accessed 01st Dec 2014.

 Commer, C. (unknown). Berlin Zoo and Surrounding Areas. Available: http://theelephantgate.weebly.com/berlin-zoo-and-surrounding-areas.html. Last accessed 01st Dec 2014.

Unknown. (Unknown). Theatre Tech. Available: http://www.siprep.org/page.cfm?p=5213. Last accessed 01st Dec 2014.

Unknown. (Unknown). Mission & History. Available: http://theatre.uiowa.edu/about-us/mission-history. Last accessed 01st Dec 2014.

Stanislavski Post 2

The Emcee is the very first character we meet in the script and is straight away full of energy and character, that's why I chose this scene. First impressions are extremely important and I find that he is very likeable from the start.

Stanislavski Post 1

The Master Of Ceremonies (The Emcee) is the host of the Kit Kat Club, he introduces all the acts in the show as well as performing himself.

 Roy Zornow. (2014). Cabaret Revival?. Available: http://www.ekrap.com/?p=617. Last accessed 01st Dec 2014.

In the script he is described as: "a bizarre little figure - much lipstick, much rouge, patent leather hair parted in the middle". I like that he is described as bizarre, I think it's a great keyword to keep in mind when creating ideas for the contemporary character. Though he does wear makeup it's quite clear he is male unlike The Kit Kat Girls who are very androgynous.

He's flamboyant and energetic but never seen off stage so his true persona remains a mystery. 

Practice - The Emcee

After practicing my face design on myself for the first time i decided it looked too much like a clown and there was nothing about the look that was different to anything I had seen before. Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of the original mouth from my design but I think that was the main thing I disliked about the outcome. I also needed to come up with something around the eyes to really make it stand out as it looked very bare.

I went back to experiment a bit more with different patterns and came up with a few new ideas. I've had very mixed opinions of both sides of the face I did so I need to play around a bit more to get a final

design done. I'm happy with the new lip shape and colour as I feel it references the emcee and the 1930's in a contemporary way. From here I am going to experiment with some more patterns to determine exactly what I want for my final look.

Initial Face Chart

I came up with this design from a traditional clown white face with red cheeks and also from the Walt Paper images I found on Pinterest. I changed the positioning of where you would usually place the cheek colour to give it a contemporary spin and I want to shade around the edge with a black to make it stand out. 

I was inspired for the big mouth from the images below as they are the complete opposite to a thin 1930s lip and I will block the eyebrows and redraw thinner ones as a historical reference.

www.pinterest.com - 25/11/12

Walt Paper

"A dragon fly with a scorpion tail"

Walt Paper was in the centre of the New York City Club Kids in the 90s and became well known for his contribution towards art and fashion. He went on to form a metal band with a group of other club kids and would create elaborate costumes to wear. He is now known as Walt Cassidy and is now a contemporary artist based in New York.

When pinning away on pinterest I noticed that a few images were of the same person, that's how I came across Walt and he inspired me massivley when creating my contemporary image.  I've mentioned that The Emcee reminds me of a clown like character and that's how I think Walt Papers look comes across. 

The Emcee Keywords

I came up with a few keywords that I feel relate to The Emcee and also some that I came across in the script. These will help me when coming up with a contemporary design for my character.

 

Party Monster review

Party monster is based on a the true story of how Michael Alig became a well known club kid in New York which eventually lead him to a life of partying, drugs and alcohol and to the murder of Angel Melendez. 

Lee-ann had suggested that I watch this movie way before this project started so I was aware of it but not yet had the chance to see it. I've heard of James St James from non stop watching Rupauls Drag Race but had no idea how he became well known so it was really interesting to find out his story and how it lead to him meeting Michael.

I loved the film from the start, the costumes and makeup were so extreme and like nothing I had seen before and even when it came to the serious parts they somehow made it fun!! It's a true story of what fame can do to a person and how they will do anything to get by.

Technical Post - 1930s Bob & Curls

Products & Tools needed:

• Small curling tongs
• Pintail comb
• Sectioning clips
• Smoothing out brush
• Kirby grips
• Hairspray
• Shinespray
• Vitapoint
• Denman brush

 Step one:

Brush out the hair thouroughly to ensure there are no knots and tangles

Step two:

Part the hair in a side parting in line with the highest point of the brow, also section from one ear to the other so you will be left with 4 seperate sections

Step three:

Start by curling the front into a brickwork formation, remember to curl the direction you want the hair to fall

Step four:

Repeat this formation for the back, the hair should all be curled in brickwork and help in place with sectioning clips

Step five:

Once the hair has set for long enough and is cool you can take the clips out and brush through the hair to separate the curls, allow the hair to fall in the direction it was set in. 

Step six:

Use a small amount of vitapoint to give the curls some definition by running it through with your fingers

Step seven:

To create the bob take the bottom of the hair and roll it underneath, secure with grips making sure they are hidden 

Step eight:

Hairspray to set and also use shine spray if you want that shiny effect on the hair!!

Character Comparisson

I found a lot of similarities between Sally Bowles and Michael Alig after reading the Cabaret script and watching Party Monster.

Thought we don't know exactly how Sally ended up in Berlin I imagine it's for the same reason that Michael went to New York, to fulfill a dream.  

They both want to be famous but this leads them to a drug/drink and party filled atmosphere that they get so drawn into they don't care how it damages them emotionally. In the end it ends badly for both of them and it just seems that some people will do anything just for fame. 

Club Culture

Club Culture started in New York City in the late 1980's, a group that would be known as Club Kids was formed which involved crazy parties, excessive drug taking and elaborate costumes. 

The term Club Kids began from Michael Alig who is one of the most well known club kids of his generation. Along with original club kid James St James the pair would start something explosive which eventually lead to a historical murder. This would become written about in a book by James St James himself and also a film would be made based on this book.          

"It is easy to draw comparisons between the club scene of the 1920's and the rave scene that exploded over 60 years later. They both had riotous musical beats, totemic deaths, obligatory media panics, moral outrage and resultant knee jerk legislation. Both scenes were viewed as direct challenges to the sanctity of public order and both revealed the deep-seated suspicion authorities hold about pleasure itself. The clubs of the 1920's and 1960's shared a similar inventiveness when it came to generating sensual spaces that intensified it's social and experiential potential and drew together creative mavericks, who were determined to banish the mundane conformity of the everyday world from the dark and sweaty spaces of the night."

Evaluation of historical image

To kick start my historical cabaret character I first researched into traditional 1930s hair and makeup to get the most accurate ideas possible. I was initially researching 20s makeup as the script is set in 1929-1930 but came to realise it is completely different type of look. A 20s makeup is a lot more of a dark, rounded smokey eye which became a lot more subtle towards the start of the 30s. I found that looking into 30s icons was useful too and I got a lot of inspiration from Greta Garbo as I loved her defined lip shape and the definition she would have in her eye makeup. I  got most of my visual references from Pinterest as I find they help me the most when creating designs.

I had to keep reminding myself that makeup wouldn't have been as accessible in that period as it is today so I wanted to keep the look semi subtle. I found that a lot of makeup looks focused on the brows and lips so I wanted to do the same for my design. I picked light, neutral shades with no shimmer for the eyes to show a barely there style but still giving them definition. The most challenging part about the design was probably the eyebrows as they needed to be blocked out in order to redraw them thinner and change the shape. Blocking out eyebrows is one of the hardest things to do but fortunately my eyebrows are very light and fine which makes it much easier to get them flat.

For the hair I decided to use a wig as I wanted blonde hair, the wig I used was made for real hair so it was easy to style. It was also quite a long wig so using the techniques we learned in one of Seema's lessons I made it into a short bob. I wanted the curls in the hair to be slightly messy to show that she would have been laying around in bed with sailors and wouldn't have much time in between to touch it up. I pre styled it so all that needed doing to my hair was prepare it for the wig meaning there was more time to concentrate on getting the makeup as clean as possible. The challenge with the wig was that I hadn't learnt how to disguise the lace front which meant they were visible in the final images.

I read a character analysis of Fraulein Kost and also through the script of Cabaret several times to make sure I understood her character and background. I took into account every detail from where she may have come from to where she is now and why.  I wanted to portray both sides of her personality through my image which would be her vulnerability and the confident side. The best way to do this was through the facial expression and body language that I presented when modelling for the final image.

Historical Image - Partner's design

My partner Lee-ann gave me detailed instructions, face chart and talked me through how she wanted me to create her look. She made it really easy for me to understand and I'm pleased with the outcome. I struggled with the hair a little as Lee-anne's hair is quite coarse and she had a lot of flyaway's when trying to curl but I think it turned out great. It also made it easier that me and Lee-ann had picked the same character so I already had a rough idea of how she wanted it to look.

Historical Image - my design

I created this design and wig based on a traditional 1930s woman. I wanted to keep it quite neutral as from the reference images I found this is how most women would look. My partner Lee-ann worked really well with me and created the look exactly how I wanted it and I'm really pleased. 

I styled the wig myself, I wanted the curls to look a little messy as she is a prostitute and wouldn't really have much time between sailors to fix her hair. I'm not sure if this came across or if it just looks like a badly done styling! Regardless I'm pleased with the results overall.

Anita Berber Look

These are the Anita Berber continuity images that I created, it was actually more difficult than I thought to get the hair and makeup done in such a short amount of time and I have to be honest I concentrated too much on the makeup which resulted in me having a rushed hairstyle that I'm really unhappy with!

I actually prefer the results of the first attempt I did, the eyeshadow is darker and the blush shows up a lot more on my phone camera! This is something I need to take into consideration next time. The brows are also a lot darker and thicker in the left image so I really need to pay close attention to detail.

Face Design choice 2

I came to realize that a 1920's eye was not as dark as i initially thought. The focus was more on the long eyelashes and cupids bow lip. Some women would line their eyes with black kohl and smudge it out onto the eyelid, green and turquoise were also a popular colour but more so for those that perform or for an evening look. 


I came up with this design after looking into some more iconic 1920's women like Clara Bow and Greta Garbo. The eyeshadow is a little more light but still has some definition with a darker brown in the corner and also making the upper lash line darker by "tightlining", which is lining the upper line of the eye with a pencil. 

I noticed a trend in a berry coloured lip rather than a postbox red so I decided to go with that. I want the eyebrows to be thin with a slight roundness too them as I don't want the look to come across too theatrical I want it to stay true to the era. I am still exploring the option of fake eyelashes without making them look too over top and keeping them as natural as possible.

Technical Post - Portrait painting with Supracolour palette

Products & tools you will need:

• Supracolour palette
• Sponges 
• Makeup brushes
• Spatula

Step One:

Start with a clean, dry face before you being any makeup application!

Step Two:

I found a sponge was the best way to apply the makeup to recreate this image in a dabbing motion as it gets an even coverage and it's easier to blend

Step 3:

Finish with a fixing spray to avoid smudges and transferring  

Initial face chart and hair thoughts

I got a lot of inspiration from this image of Jean Harlow (below right) as I love how dark her eyes are along with the dark red lip. I created the face chart below (left) based on this look but came to realize Harlow was from the 30's and cabaret is in the 1920's so more research of women from this era was needed! 

In terms of hair I found a wig that I thought would be perfect but as it's synthetic it would be too difficult to manipulate the hair into the finger wave that I want to do at the front and also it's pre- curled which is a bit of a cheat! Guess you can only try! A wig will definitely be the best option in order to get the colour that I want without having to dye my models hair!

Mood Board of Ideas

I put together this mood board to show my thoughts on how my character will look, what she will be wearing, accessories she might have and the scene she will be in. I originally wanted the hair to be curly with a finger wave at the front so the top left image I came across was the perfect inspiration for hairstyle I want to create. It's curly with a little bit of a frizzy texture to it, Kost's hair won't be perfect from going in and out of the bedroom all the time but it's still a little glamorous with the finger wave.

The lingerie and long dressing gown is perfect as between clients I think she would just throw on the dressing gown to cover herself up a bit when leaving her room, I see her as a smoking a cigarette with a long cigarette holder as she's leaning against her door frame waiting for her next sailor.