top of page
Eurydice
Photographer: Lonnie Martin Design: Aubrey Helene Neumann (Costumes), Lonnie Martin (Set), Eric Armstrong (Lights)
How It Began
Costume Sale Spring 2022
Eurydice
Photographer: Lonnie Martin Design: Aubrey Helene Neumann (Costumes), Lonnie Martin (Set), Eric Armstrong (Lights)
1/3
Costumes
As an actor, I'm particularly drawn to the transformative power of costumes. I would eagerly await the moment I tried on my costume and assume the character - often seeking out my shoes in advance in an effort to learn the character's walk and key in to how they move through space. I look forward to this moment just as eagerly as when I direct. I love the transformation - not only in individual actors, but also in the overall storytelling - as groups cohere, rivalries emerge, and color, shape, and texture elevate the production.
Design: During my first year at Davis & Elkins College, I assumed responsibility for costume production while Lonnie Martin handled scenic design. I designed Eurydice (above) and recruited Julianne Kay Nogar to design The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Nogar, a freelance costume designer who earned her MFA in Theatre Design from The Ohio State University, served as an excellent mentor and model for our students. Inspired by that experience, students Misti Igo and Sophia Van Nederveen subsequently designed Failure: A Love Story. For all three productions, I served as costume shop manager, ensuring that each design was realized through a combination of pulling, purchasing, and creating costume pieces.
Organization: When I assumed responsibility for the costume shop, it was in considerable disarray due to both the disruptions of COVID-19 and the absence of a full-time design faculty member. Working alongside student employees, I helped organize the shop into functional sections by removing damaged items, setting aside overstock for sale, and arranging the remaining inventory by type and color. Although I no longer oversee the shop on a regular basis, I have periodically returned to assist with this work when student employees needed hours. As of Fall 2026, I estimate that approximately two-thirds of the shop has been reorganized. We held our first Costume Shop Sale in Spring 2022 and our first combined Costume and Props Sale in Fall 2024.
Student Opportunities: The costume shop provides an excellent hands-on learning environment. Students are especially drawn to opportunities to create, so I intentionally design projects that help them develop practical skills. These projects range from messenger bags and hanging pockets for Introduction to Design and Technology students to collages and renderings for student designers to scrunchies (left) and skirts for student workers. Some of the strongest work emerges when students are empowered to develop their own solutions. By identifying a need and giving them creative freedom, I have seen students produce imaginative and often exceptional results.
bottom of page