James and the Giant Peach Costume Practicals
Grasshopper
Seagull Masks
James and the Giant Peach is a show that has captured the imagination of kids throughout decades. It’s a story of perseverance and magic. The costume designer and I worked together to figure out how to tell the story of each magical insect in the show. We wanted to accentuate a specific characteristic of each character. Emphasizing the magic to push them further into the world of fantasy! I worked on designed and implementing each one of these.
Ladybug
Shark Fin
Worm
Worm to the left we created a cane for him that looked opaque when unlit but once lit would show a wriggling mass of lights up and down his cane. I used Noodles wired up and down his cane for lights. The cables couldn’t be hidden so we incorporated them into the design.
The Shark Fin to the left is one of three of them. This was created for a darker seen to help illuminate the sharks in the most recognizable ways. Utilized the natural curve of the fin of sharks along with a more reflective grey/metallic fabric. This was achieved using two Noodles.
Credits:
Director: Rodolfo Robles-Cruz
Lighting Design: Zach Young
Costume Design: Katie Concannon
Sound Design: Damien Chavez
Projection Designer: A.J. Hurtado
Scenic Designer: Julia Yelvington & Leah Austin
Photographer: Gavin Strawnato
Ladybug to the left has 50 blue LED sequins that were incorporated into her skirting along painted paths to illustrate her wings.
Grasshopper to the left was the narrator along with being an active character. He would often step outside to talk to the audience. For this we wanted to make sure everyone was looking at his face as his antennas would always be lit up during those moments. We achieved the lighting by 3D printing the antennas to give us shape and then attaching a Noodle to it.
Centipede to the right always wore this leather vest with cording that was woven throughout it to symbolize the feet. We placed red LED sequins across these feet so in lower lighting they would help shine though.
The 3 Seagull Masks to the Right were created to accentuate the curves of the beak when activated. This was achieved with 5 separate Noodles.