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Fashion

Marcy’s Costume Design For Getting A Head

Cast and crew of Portable Currency’s previews of
Getting A Head, a new play by Jeffery Atik

Cynthia:  Woo hoo! Congrats to the cast and crew of Getting A Head (a new play by Jeffery Atik, and presented by our theatre group, Portable Currency) on a fantastic weekend of performances!

Marcy (pouting):  Yeah yeah. So the acting was sensational, the direction was stellar, and the writing was superb. Whatever.

Cynthia:  Why so grumpy?

Marcy:  The costumes were only okay.

Cynthia:  Awwww… I think you did a great job for under $100. And anyway, we only needed to suggest the costumes, not create a literal interpretation.

Marcy (still pouting):  Whatever.

Cynthia:  Oh stop it. Let’s look at your highlights. Here we’ve got a young Queen Victoria as played by the voraciously versatile actor, Olivia Cristina Delgado.

Olivia Cristina Delgado as a young Queen Victoria

Cynthia:  This dress and two petticoats were found at Goodwill. What a score! I thought Queen Vicky’s costume would be the most difficult and it was the easiest.

And here we’ve got Steven Christian Amendola as Charley “Chinese” Gordon (a famous British martyr) and Olivia as a murderous boy, Suleiman.

Steven Christian Amendola as Charley Gordon
Olivia Cristina Delgado as Suleiman

Cynthia: Both are in marching band jackets that I got at Jet Rag in Hollywood. We thought marching band jackets would be more colorful than military jackets.

Marcy:  Also way cheaper.

Cynthia: And here we’ve got Winston Churchill’s mom, Jennie Jerome, played by the always marvelous, Marta Portillo.

Marta Portillo as Jennie Jerome
aka Winston Churchill’s mom

Cynthia: She’s wearing her own black top and pearls, and I got this navy blue Jessica McClintock skirt at a thrift store for $7.

Marcy (excitedly):  That’s Marta from the last play we costumed – Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa. I love Marta. Do you think she’d let me be her kitty?

Cynthia:  She does love cats but –

Marcy races off to pack a bag and head to Marta’s.

Cynthia:  Wait! You forgot about Muneeb’s suit!

Muneeb Rehman as Zubayr

Cynthia:  Our actor, Muneeb Rehman, found this suit at a thrift store some time ago and was waiting for the perfect time to wear it. Lucky for us it was our play!

Marcy races out the door with a suitcase full of Friskies.

Cynthia:  Marcy! Come back! We’re reopening Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa in two weeks at Theatre Asylum in Hollywood and need to find a Santa hat and a few more costumes…

Marcy runs faster.


by the way, my costume for crazy Dutch explorer, Alexine Tinne (far left)
was culled entirely from my own wardrobe.
And that’s the Anthro “snakebite belt”




*You Might Also Like:

Marcy Got Hired As A Costume Designer! Again!

Styling The Wives Of Pancho Villa

Opening Night

 

 

 

 

 

November 21, 2014
Fashion

Marcy Gets Hired As A Costume Designer! Again!


Cynthia:  Congrats, Marcy! You did such a great job costuming the last play, you got hired again!

Marcy: Oh yeah? What are the deets?

Cynthia:  You need to find costumes for a young Queen Victoria, who was quite the fashion plate in her younger years.

Queen Victoria

Cynthia:  Winston Churchill’s mom, Jennie Jerome, who was considered the greatest beauty of her time.

Jennie Jerome

Cynthia:  Jennie Jerome was an American from Brooklyn, New York.  She was one of the first “Buccaneers”, rich American women who went to England to marry for a title. Think of Lady Cora Crawley (Elizabeth McGovern’s character) in Downton Abbey. Jennie was quite the man killer too. She was rumored to have over 200 lovers.

Marcy (impressed):  Go Jennie!

Cynthia: Also, Alexine Tinne, a very rich and very eccentric Dutch explorer, who spent most of her adult life exploring North Eastern and Central Africa. She especially wanted to discover the source of the Nile. Alexine was fearless.

Alexine Tinne

Marcy (impressed):  Go Alexine!

Cynthia:  And as for the men, we’ve got to outfit a young Winston Churchill, General Charles Gordon, slave trader Zubayr, and his son, Suleiman.

Marcy:  The men’s costumes are never as fun. Just tell them all to wear suits and call it a day.

Cynthia:  Ummm… well… their costumes are important too. Especially since they have the larger roles.

Marcy:  Fine. So what’s the budget?

Silence.

Marcy:  No budget? Again? You’re doing another period piece and expect to me come up with fabulous costumes for… nothing?!

Cynthia:  You can spend $100 and I’ll give you all the Friskies you can eat. Deal?

Marcy:  I need to consult my agent.

Cynthia:  I am your agent.

Marcy:  Obviously, I need a new agent.

*The show I am working on is called Getting A Head, a new play by Jeffery Atik. We are running previews at Theater Asylum Lab in Hollywood on November 14,15,16. (i’m playing Alexine!)


*Email MarcyVeryMuch@gmail.com to get a seat. Admission is free/just rsvp. =^..^=



*You Might Also Like:

Costume Design By… Marcy?

Opening Night Of Telenovela Wives Of Pancho Villa

 

 

 

 

 

October 29, 2014
Fashion

Styling The (Not) Wives Of Pancho Villa: Linda Landeros as Fernanda and Isadora O’Boto as Senora Torres

Senora Torres and Fernanda
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia: Here we are at Part Four of Styling The Wives of Pancho Villa, featuring the hilarious comedy duo of Isadora O’Boto as Senora Torres…

Isadora O’Boto

Cynthia: … and Linda Landeros as her daughter, Fernanda.

Linda Landeros

Marcy:  Hey!

Cynthia:  What?

Marcy:  Get it straight. Senora Torres and Fernanda are NOT wives of Pancho Villa.

Cynthia:  Righto. That’s Juanita’s (Pancho’s 2nd wife) mom and sister who are in big trouble for trying to steal Pancho’s money. In the play, Pancho has them held prisoners and they have no idea if the socio-path, Rodolfo Fierro, will kill them or not.

They spend the whole time tied up and bickering. It is some of the funniest theatre I have ever seen.

Marcy:  Fernanda is so bad and beautiful and bossy. I want to be just like her.

Cynthia:  If you mean spoiled, bratty, dramatic, and a thief, then you ARE like her.

Marcy purrs.

Cynthia:  Fernanda is played by the awesomely funny Linda Landeros. Linda is an actor/comedienne/writer.

Linda Landeros as Fernanda in
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa
Linda Landeros as Fernanda in
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  We put her in a –
Green skirt (thrifted) to match the green of her mother’s dress.
Black blouse (Linda’s own) to go with Fernanda’s scheming, criminal character.
Pink flowers (Claire’s Boutique) to tie her in with the rest of the actresses.

Marcy (entranced):  She’s so bad.

Cynthia:  Fernanda’s mom, Senora Torres, is played by another awesomely funny actor/stand-up comic/writer, Isadora O’Boto.

Isadora O’Boto as Senora Torres in
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

 

Isadora O’Boto as Senora Torres in
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  I found this green dress in a thrift shop for $12 and fell in love with it. I thought it was perfect for a telenovela senora from 1914. Don’t let these pictures of a sophisticated senora fool you though. Senora Torres is pretty much a hapless dingbat, played to perfection by Isadora!

Marcy starts scheming.

Marcy:  I’m going to go off with Fernanda and we’re going to steal all of Pancho Villa’s money and run away to a big house in El Paso. And be famous and pretentious and spoiled. Yeah.



*For more information on super funny Isadora O’Boto please check her out at IsadoraOBoto.com.
*For more information on the hilarious Linda Landeros please check her out at LindaLanderos.com.

*Check out  Part One, Part Two, and Part Three of our series about costuming the play, Telenovela Wive of Pancho Villa.

 

June 28, 2014
Fashion

Styling The Wives Of Pancho Villa (Paula Rebelo as Juanita)

Paula Rebelo as Juanita in
Telenovela Wives Of Pancho Villa


Cynthia:  So here we are at Part Two of our Styling The Wives of Pancho Villa blog post series for the play, Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa, by Jeffery Atik.

Marcy:  Just get on with it already.

Cynthia:  Wife #2 is Juanita, played by powerhouse actor, Paula Rebelo.

Paula Rebelo

Cynthia:  Seriously, Paula is an incredible force onstage. I could watch her work all day. She attacks her part with precision and playfulness and fills up the entire theatre. She is awesomely talented. Plus, OMG, she’s so gorgeous.

Marcy (in love):  Do you think she would let me be her kitty?

Cynthia:  Paula’s character, Juanita, has a face off with first wife, Dona Luz, so I wanted to put her in the reverse colors of Dona Luz. Black top and pink skirt.

Paula Rebelo as Juanita in
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  The top is thrifted and the skirt is from Forever 21. It was a steal at $7.80. I added the green flower to tie in the other costumes that I will get to later on.

Pancho and his wives in
Telenovela Wives Of Pancho Villa

Marcy:  Hey. I added the green flower.

Cynthia:  You mean you tried to kill the green flower because you thought it was a sick bird and therefore, easy pickings.

Marcy:  Shhhh… I want Paula to think I gave her something special so she’ll let me be her kitty.

Cynthia:  I’m not sure Paula wants a high maintenance kitty who exhibits terrorist tendencies on a daily basis.

Marcy:  You’re wrong, Cindy.  Everybody wants a homicidal kitty in their life.

 

*For more information on Paula’s fascinating body of work, please check her out at PaulaRebelo.com

*For Part 1 of Styling the Wives of Pancho Villa please click here.

 

June 25, 2014
Fashion

Styling The Wives Of Pancho Villa (Kazandra Santana as Dona Luz)

Kazandra Santana as Dona Luz in
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa


Cynthia:  Yay! Our show, Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa, by Jeffery Atik, has opened to sold out audiences!

Marcy:  Whatever. Let’s talk costumes.

Cynthia:  We spent $300 costuming thirteen actors. It’s a mix of the actors’ own clothes, thrift shop finds, and Forever 21.

The year is 1914 during the Mexican Revolution. The play is a fictionalized satire of the lives of Pancho Villa’s many wives done in the Telenovela style. Think soap opera, comedy, high drama, intrigue, and The Real Housewives shows.

Dona Luz, who was Pancho Villa’s first wife, is the heart of the show.

 

 

Cynthia:  Our Dona Luz is played by the super talented Kazandra Santana.

 

Kazandra Santana

 

Cynthia:  Kazandra as Dona Luz was my first outfit find and we built the show around this costume.

 

Kazandra Santana as Dona Luz
Top and Skirt from Forever 21

I was lucky that Forever 21 has long skirts and old fashioned type tops that are lightweight and inexpensive. And sexy. Our idea was to evoke 1914, not literally translate it with period costumes. It is a Telenovela after all!

This dusky pink was perfect and Kazandra looks elegant and beautiful. The belt is her own and gave the outfit a rustic element.

Kazandra Santana brings such depth, grace, humor, outrage, conniving, and sexiness to her role that I am sure the real life Dona Luz would be thrilled to pieces.

Dona Luz, first and forever wife of Pancho Villa

Marcy:  I don’t know. The real life Dona Luz looks pretty fierce. She doesn’t look like the kind of lady who would be thrilled to pieces about anything.

Cynthia:  She does seem pretty formidable in this photo. Hey! Maybe she needs a cat.

Marcy:  Well. Obviously.

 

June 24, 2014
Fine Arts

Opening Night of Telenovela Wives Of Pancho Villa

Telenovela Wives Of Pancho Villa


Cynthia and Marcy are running around like headless chickens, screaming and panicking.

Cynthia:  Marcy! The play I am producing and you are costuming – Telenovela Wives Of Pancho Villa – is opening tonight!

Marcy:  I know.

Cynthia:  Well hurry up with that hat.

Marcy:  You hurry up.

Cynthia:  I just thought of five things that need to be done.

Marcy:  So you do them.

Cynthia:  I don’t have time.

Marcy:  I don’t have time either.

Cynthia:  We haven’t even blogged in a week.

Marcy:  There’s no time.

Cynthia and Marcy look at each other and start screaming.

Marcy and Cynthia:  AAAAAACCCCKKKKKK!!!!

They collapse to the floor.

Silence.

Marcy:  Why don’t you show some rehearsal photos and we can do write ups about the costumes and the costume process next week.

Cynthia:  Good idea. Here it is.

Life in the theatre. An emotional life. A silly life. A fun life. A difficult life. The best life.

 

 

 

 

June 20, 2014
Fine Arts

Costume Design By… Marcy?

Postcard for Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa
Design by Alex Amerri


Cynthia:  Okay, Marcy. We got asked to do costumes for the play I am co-producing for the Hollywood Fringe Festival, Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa, a new play by Jeffery Atik.

Marcy:  You?

Cynthia:  Us!

Marcy:  You’ve never done that in your life. You don’t know how to operate a sewing machine. You are a fashion disaster most of the time. What’s wrong with them? Don’t they have eyes?

Cynthia (nonchalantly):  Apparently, if you are the only woman on the producing team and have a semi-fashion blog, people will assume you know fashion stuff.

Marcy:  And you said yes?!

Cynthia:  WE said yes. Or, I said yes for you. It will be your name in the program. Costume Design by Marcy Very Much.

Marcy: Don’t they know I’m a cat?!

Cynthia:  Oh yeah. They think it’s cool. I figured we could document our progress on the blog.

Marcy:  You mean our panic.

Cynthia (brightly):  That too! So we will have thirteen actors to outfit in 1914 attire. We want the women to look sexy and beautiful and powerful and –

 

 

Marcy (panicking):  Thirteen actors in period dress?!! What’s the budget?

Silence.

Marcy (now screaming):  What’s the budget?!

Cynthia:  There is no budget.

Marcy faints.

Cynthia (cheering):  Hollywood Fringe Festival – here we come!

Marcy is still passed out.

Cynthia:  It’s okay Marcy! We can handle it!

Cynthia faints too.

Cynthia with the cast and producing team for
Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

 

*Our postcard design was done by the super talented, Alex Amerri. Check out his website, AlexAmerri.com. Thank you, Alex!

 

May 7, 2014

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