MONIKA GOEBEL

The classical ballet by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was first performed by the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow in 1877.

Prince Siegfried falls in love with Odette, a beautiful maiden who has been transformed into a swan by the evil magician von Rothbart. The latter pulls all strings to gain power at the royal court via his daughter, Odile. Love finally wins as Prince Siegfried defeats the magician.

Removable tutu top plates can be a budget consideration for ballet companies. This beaded tutu top plate design for The Nutcracker’s Snow Queen evolved from a typical snowflake shape to play with icicle formations and colors found in nature.

The translucent blue organza will be backed by silk. A placket will be added as closure once the dancer’s measurements are obtained and the center will be cut out.

Care was taken to keep the beading away from the dancer’s body in case of a Snow Queen/Snow King pas de deux.

Revelations was first performed by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre in January 1960. Fifty-eight years after its premiere, it still closes every company performance. I was greatly impressed by the transformation of the biblical text into music and movement.

In designing for this modern dance piece, I followed the cycle of oppression with dancers’ humble, earth-toned costumes akin to African cloth, through the sacrament of baptism with water cloth and delicate pink to the moments of celebration of the indomitable spirit with solids and geometric color play.

Renderings are in water color and the figures were intentionally elongated to show their graceful movement.

In this period drama directed by Sally Potter, a young androgynous Elizabethan man struggles with gender expectations and acceptance. Using the gift of longevity from his queen, Orlando transcends ages and gender and finally attains a satisfying identity in the 1990s.

Care was taken to depict historical accuracy with contemporary fabric swatches in the selected sketches from the 17th and 18th century.

Shakespeare’s comedy Much Ado about Nothing is set in Messina, Italy, in 1598 and 1599. Sweet, traditional Hero, one of the governor’s daughters, is about to marry war hero Claudio. Gossip and intrigue (“much ado about nothing”) lead to the bride being rejected at the altar. Hero faints and is declared dead to re-test the sincerity of her husband-to-be.

In the context of this play, Elizabethan underpinnings were researched and built with contemporary fabrics. Hero’s color palette reflects her love of the land (the green of the vineyards), the white of her innocence, and the deep red of the violation of her trust in Claudio.

The Logo Bag Design contains a chain-stitched monogram on linen. Burgundy and shades of blue thread were complemented by couched gold metallic thread and graduated pearl beads.

Curvilinear design reminiscent of Art Nouveau was contrasted by a lattice to anchor the pearl beads above sprinkles of gold seed stitches.

The musical by Andrew Lippa focuses on New York City of the 1920s. The prohibition-era ambiance incites sexy former Vaudeville dancer Queenie to call for a wild party in the apartment she shares with Vaudeville clown Burrs.

An ensuing love triangle involves handsome Black who wants to rescue Queenie from an abusive relationship. Alcoholic faded beauty Kate is part of the inner circle of the party guests who are taken by surprise by the deadly outcome.

The costume design plays on the contrasts between the four selected characters.

Harold is a young man desperate for his mother’s attention via artfully staged death acts. He finds in Maude a kindred spirit defying convention and falls in love with her.

Maude is a witty 79-year-old lady with a rich past and refreshing disrespect for authority. She encourages Harold to love while finalizing her own cosmic dance.

Athena is the goddess of war and wisdom in Greek mythology. I created the vambrace so that the Greek warriors would wear a visible reminder of their goddess to gain courage and make wise decisions towards victory.

Felt and leather were used for this costume crafts project.

This theatre dress from stock was altered for the 2019 production of The Nutcracker (El Cascanueses) by Dancing in the Streets Arizona.

For the parents party scene, a brocade panel was added to the front of the dress to add richness in texture and color. The neckline was lowered and trimmed with teal velvet. The stretchy velvet was also used to insert an underarm gusset to facilitate movement. Brocade, velvet, and lace were layered onto the woven dress fabric to mimic undersleeves. Due to time constraints, the only change in the back is in the neckline.

The dress was ultimately not used in the production, but it was a good learning experience in low-budget costuming.

Due to Covid-19, the Mesa Community College production of Liaisons Dangereuses and my collaboration as patternmaker/builder were cancelled. Panniers were chosen as individual historical costuming project. They served as underpinnings prior to the French Revolution, giving support to voluminous, beautiful gowns.

The construction followed the Butterick pattern B4484 (Pocket Hoops). Muslin was used as main fabric while the base and inner sections were reinforced with duck canvas. The vertical bone casings were sewn but not filled to allow the panniers to collapse for storage.

This bodice and tutu are an interpretation of Karinska’s Western Symphony saloon girl costume.

Construction involved machine and hand sewing, piping, boning, gathering/ruffling, appliqué, and sequin work.

The Old Globe Theatre’s 2022 production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” was informed by Afrofuturism. According to the show program, afrofuturism “blends futuristic technologies with Black culture and asthetics.”

A Thank You to draper Kathie Taylor for letting me assist in the draping of the mockup for Hippolyta. I enjoyed working on the form, anchoring the many pleats of the intricate design by David Israel Reynoso with tiny stitches.

Director/Producer/Script: Astrid Ronke

Costume Design: Christina Schaefer

Lighting & Sound: Laurence Parme

Set Designer: Manuela Seidl

Music Director: Claudia Lorenz

Website & Social Media: Martin Renschler

Marketing & Social Media: Prabalini-Peggy-Prararamesh

Video Production: Aili Kato

I enjoyed contributing to the fifth production of the German Theater Group San Diego, the only one of its kind in Southern California. “Lach Mal Wieder 2023 - Let’s Laugh Again!” featured humorous skits about German and American culture as well as a live band for cherished German hits. The Beatles hit “All You Need Is Love” summed up the vibe of this production.

As part of a diverse cast and crew, I assisted costume designer Christina Schaefer in pre-production. The excitement of live community theatre extended backstage to three generations of actors (and their pets)* where I worked wardrobe and makeup.

*These two photos are mine.

Photos: Stephen Sherrill, UCSB

Choreography: José Limón

Music: “Missa Brevis” in Tempore Belli” by Zoltan Kodaly

Staging and Direction: Alice Condodina

Costumes: inspired after the original by Ming Cho Lee

Light Design: Michael Klaers

When José Limón, founder of the eponymous modern dance company, travelled post-war Europe in 1958, he was amazed by the resilience and hope embodied by the people of Poland. This experience inspired the Missa Brevis dance piece.

A Thank You to Alice Condodina who staged and directed the current UC Santa Barbara production. As former José Limón Company dancer, she recalled the color palette and properties needed for the build of nine expansive dance skirts for the UCSB Student Company.

AS ONE, PART II

Photos: Fritz Olenberger, UCSB

Choreographer: Skylar Yeung

Music: Pyramids by Frank Ocean

Costume Designer: Dani Granaroli

Lighting Designer: Kaitlyn Capps

This year’s spring dance concert featured forty costumes that were built, embellished, or altered by the UCSB costume shop team.

For this production, I draped seven powermesh costumes for “As One, Part II” by student choreographer Skylar Yeung. I collaborated with student costume designer Dani Granaroli in the build of these overlays. Of importance was freedom of movement for “the jazz style of dance, uniting that style with ballet and contemporary dance techniques […], pushing the boundaries with an unwavering passion” (KC Buller for UCSB).

Quote source: UCSB Spring Dance Concert a Culmination of Student Discovery

CROSSROADS

Photos: Fritz Olenberger, UCSB

Choreography: Gabi Smith

Music: “Fiori” by Ame

Costume Designer: Leslie Corht

Lighting Designer: Danny Kelly

As cutter/draper for the Spring Dance Concert, I was also involved in the creation of these costumes for CROSSROADS. As communicated by student costume designer Leslie Corht, the design reflects the toll classic ballet takes on a female dancer’s body. The powermesh cutouts on the spandex biketards progressively grow, fracturing the silhouette.

Photos by Jeff Liang, UCSB

A new play by: James Still

Directed by: Risa Brainin

Scenic Designer: Ann Sheffield

Costume Designer: Nicole Jescinth Smith

Associate Costume Designer: Leslie Cohrt

Lighting/Projections Designer: Michael Klaers

Sound/Music Designer: Michael Keck

Choreographer: Christina McCarthy

UCSB's LAUNCH PAD productions allow for students to collaborate with a distinguished playwright. Everybody's Favorite Mothers chronicles the budding activism of Jeanne Manford (Julie Fishell), the founder of PFLAG (Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). She joined a PRIDE march in 1972 with her gay son Morty (Travers Tobis), confronting homophobia, as present today as then.

In a dream-like scene of gay fantasia, Jeanne's decision to support Morty is reinforced by Mother figures - friend Mike (Jake Marshall) changes into Marge Simpson, Leena (Indigo Runge) incarnates the Virgin Mary, and father Jules (Paul Canter) excels as Mrs. Cratchit alongside with Maria von Trapp (Netta Nakash).

The challenge for the costume shop was the creation of "onesies," where the various costume elements are assembled into one to allow for changes on stage.

Photos by Jeff Liang, UCSB

Directed by Sara Rademacher

Music direction by Nicole McKenzie

Co-Scenic Designers: Maggie Welch, Greg Mitchell

Costume Designer: Kate Bergh

Lighting Designer: Vickie Scott

Associate Lighting Designer: Kadrik Blatt

Projections Designer: Elijah Frankle

Assistant Director, Dramaturg: Alex Guaydacan

Despite a relatively small cast of seven, Paula Vogel's INDECENT provided several challenges for the UCSB costume shop team. "Blink[s] in time" of a Jewish theatre troupe span 1906 through the 1950s and therefore required many different looks. A sophisticated tubing system was devised, through which the actors released "ashes" as they came to life amidst battered suitcases in the opening scene.

The only build in this production was the dress for Halina (Indigo Runge) modelled after a late 1930s/early 1940s garment. Draping, drafting, and flat-patterning techniques were used to achieve a comfortable fit that had to withstand some rambunctious scenes during the run of the show. The dress features smocking at the shoulders, pleating at the cuff, and a skirt with eight gores. Thank you to costume designer Kate Bergh who believed in my skills to meet this challenge!