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.