Meg Henry

Makeup by Rachel Gallagher

'She says nothing at all, but simply stares upward into the dark sky and watches, with sad eyes, the slow dance of the infinite stars' Neil Gaiman, Stardust

This sparkling costume for the character of Yvaine, a fallen star from  the book 'Stardust' by Neil Gaiman by Meg Henry for her graduation portfolio at ECA Performance Costume.  Inspired by the books celestial theme the dress is embellished with the twelve constellations of the Zodiac and has lighting sewn into the design. This costume was designed to be part of an evening outdoor theatre performance.

Above photograph: Laurence Winram

Rebekah Rai

Rebekah Ria's exquisite costumes for Peter Pan.

"I reimagined 'the Tale of Peter Pan' as a contemporary multicultural ballet, representing how internationally beloved the story has become. I wanted my designs to fly away from the stuffy Edwardian setting and towards a modern and diverse world. To achieve this I incorporated silhouettes of traditional clothing and patterns from various ethnicities. My Tinkerbell design is constructed of organza and fibre optic filaments, giving the effect of a weightless and prickly ball of light floating about the stage." Rebekah Rai 

An-Ru Cheng II

"Rhinoceros is an absurd play reflecting disillusionment after the World Wars. Each character eventually turns into rhinoceros except the main one who is left alone. Inspired by surrealism the costumes are created from objects according to occupations of characters to represent the anxiety of modern society and mechanical life." An-Ru Cheng

This surrealist play is perfectly captured in An-Ru's costumes with their geometric framing and absurd structures, that enclose and separate the actors from each other and the audience, like caged birds.

Natascha Allen I

Photograph above: Gareth Easton

Second year Performance Costume student at ECA, Natascha Allen's costume for the 'Queen of the Night' from Mozart's 'The Magic Flute'.

"The Queen of the night's design took inspiration from Luna moths and the natural forms of Rene Lalique's Art Nouveau jewellery. I chose moths for two reasons: they are often associated with decay and death and they are night-dwelling creatures. Throughout the play, the Queen spirals into a dark and corrupted state as her hatred for Sarastro eats her up inside. She loses her humanity, therefore she is depicted as if metamorphosizing from a once Regal queen to a Moth hybrid. Her fading colour shows her ensuing demise due to her indulgence in her malevolent thoughts.". Natascha Allen

Becky Hollis

Becky Hollis graduated in 2014 from London School of Fashion and is now studying for a MFA in costume design at Edinburgh College of Art, in these costumes, she explores sleep paralysis.

Sleep Paralysis: A Waking Nightmare, explores its title subject; the nightmarish phenomenon that is sleep paralysis. In an immersive theatre experience, a very select audience will be invited to a house, transporting them back to 1975.
Still very little is known about this worldwide sleep disorder. Sleep Paralysis: A Waking Nightmare is designed to not only frighten willing audience members but to educate them on the effects of suffering from sleep paralysis. Each experience of sleep paralysis differs immensely, and here we take a glimpse at four separate cases.
Sleep Paralysis: A Waking Nightmare plans to open the bedroom door and invite you in.
My design work explored the effects of sleep paralysis. The striped night dress is cast in resin while the wig is laced onto a wire frame. The costume is 'frozen in time', portraying a typical symptom of sleep paralysis; where sufferers feel paralysed in their bed, unable to move their body. Becky Hollis

"Many sufferers see a Shadow type figure in the walls. My 'Shadow Man' is made from custom designed wallpaper prints. Each print is pieced together, with some prints 'peeling' like old wallpaper. The 'Shadow Man', eight foot tall, appears from the corners of the room, slowly reaching out of the walls. He holds a puppet version of the sleeper, controlling her during sleep paralysis." Becky Hollis

Katy Powell

This project is based around a book called 'Selling Out' by Justina Robson, it’s an old favourite of mine. It features many fantasy characters such as demons, fairies and the like, but I wanted to make it into a Science fiction. The clothes are all based around biotechnology ideas where the wearer and clothes are symbiotic. The character (above) is a demon called Madame des Loupes, she is described as birdlike in the book and is supposed to be clairvoyant. I decided to use elements of the eye to make her costume, the body suit is an iris print, the cape: veins and connective tissue while the beak and collar are inspired by blood vessels. Katey Powell 

Harriet Ogden II

Harriet Ogden's second graduate collection was created for Terry Pratchett's The Carpet People. 

Chief of the Munrungs tribe & the Dust. The book is set amongst the fibres of a carpet. Fantasy creatures such as the Munrung tribe travel across the carpet. Surreal movement and the transformation of the human body lead my research. Parodies of everyday objects from our world were inspirational when designing for these characters (dust, receipt). Harriet Ogden

These costumes came alive with dance and reminded me of some of Nick Cave's sound suits. 

This costume used drop sheeting that is a felt of fabric scraps created using waste textiles, the perfect carpet dust creature textile.

An-Ru Cheng I

"Daniel and Esther; 'The Possibility of an Island' is a nihilistic fiction, alternating between past and future. Daniel is a misanthropic comedian whose costume is inspired by 18th Century tailoring and laughter. Esther is a passionate actress who has many lovers, including Daniel. her costume is inspired by the instability and passion of love." An-Ru Cheng

In the costume of Esther An-Ru has created a woven bodice of cords that reach out like tendrils, when the wearer moves, but also very much resembles an arterial system, knotted closely over Esher's heart.
Daniel's tailored outfit is embellished with laughing faces it is a silent movie of a costume, mimed silent expressions leap out from the mask, the waistcoat and the tails of the jacket.

Liberty Bramall I

This Peter Rabbit from The Tales Of Beatrix Potter is part of Liberty Bramall's graduate collection for ECA Performance Costume.
Liberty's attention to detail and exquisite craftsmanship is a joy to behold. including the surface design of the jacket lining fabric and blouse, details like the carrot buttons, felted vegetables on the hat and the tufty fur poking through the trousers, hand embroidery and flocked carrots.

The distinctive, anthropomorphic characters from Beatrix Potter's famous Edwardian children's stories have been reimagined for a modern audience. The use of oversized millinery, padded silhouettes, and hand-drawn prints capture a sense of playfulness and humour. The designs are a nostalgic nod to the comforting childhood world that Potter created.

Harriet Ogden I

Harriet Ogden's graduate collection at the ECA performance costume show featured designs for Madam Butterfly. These designs were incredibly elegant, displaying stunning craftsmanship including incredible acoustic handmade porcelain tile beads, that sang in a clear chime as the model moved. The underdress was indigo perfection using techniques of sashiko. Harriet has obviously used this project to learn and master various skills such as Shibori and Sashiko and has gone on a fantastic journey of development culminating in some exquisite work.

"Cultural inaccuracies and stereotypes are commonly associated with portrayals of Puccini's opera and this fuelled my exploration into Japanese culture. Allowing me to interpret the story by adding realism while simultaneously infusing modernity. Research into Japanese 'folk' clothing and it's production methods has instilled my final costume with authenticity." Harriet Ogden