Look, there she goes!

So, this fall I had the incredible privilege of being cast as Belle in Zao Theatre's Beauty and the Beast! This was an absolute utter dream come true for me, and it has quickly shot up to the very top of my list of favorite shows I've ever done.

This one was a little different in my "process" though. As I'm sure plenty know, costumes make or break a show for me. They mean as much to me as the actual role. If I love my costumes, I will love the show that much more and vice versa. And Beauty and the Beast is SUCH an iconic show that has been done EVERYWHERE and by EVERYONE...so I knew my costumes had to be good.

Not me

Now, I know our resident costumer is more than capable. But I knew Zao didn't already own these costumes, so they would either have to rent them or build them. After several Google searches, I learned quickly that everything out there available to rent was...well, terrible. (If you want examples, I will show them to you.) Just ill-fitting or completely wrong for Belle, or honestly, half of the gold dresses I saw looked like some kid dressed up in her mother's 80s prom dress. Huge poofy shoulders and just...not flattering or beautiful. Not to mention that you generally can't alter rented costumes. So...either they fit perfectly or they look terrible.

So I asked permission to try my hand at building these three costumes myself. I figured it was July and the show didn't go up until November, so I'd start now and I would know soon enough if what I made was terrible...so I'd have plenty of time for plan B if so.

Belle has three costumes in the show. The first is her blue "town dress", which is basically a white blouse and a blue vest/skirt/dress over top. I've seen many versions of this, some plain, some fancy, some that looked nothing like Belle should look, and some that more mirrored the 2017 movie (which...was ok, but I hated everything.) My favorite version was the new Broadway/tour version.

also not me

It's a beautiful patterned corset vest, over a pretty plain (but feminine) white collared blouse. The skirt is a flowy blue circle skirt with a ruffle, covered with a pretty delicate white apron with lace trim. I love it because it's flattering and feminine, and still pretty easy to move in. But it doesn't look as plain as her dress in the animated movie. It's a little fancier for stage, which I really like. Her shoes are (pretty) flat black mary janes, which is GREAT because heels are stupid and they hurt my feet.

Costume-spiration!

So, first-up thing to make will be Belle's blue corset vest. I figured I'd start with something challenging but still small. (If I can't make this, I DEFINITELY can't make a giant gold ball gown.) Stay tuned for my tutorial!!