Friday, January 23, 2009

Wiggin' Out

Here I am getting ready to put on my wig:
To put on a wig I put my hair in pin curls and then put on this attractive wig cap.
But isn't the wig ADORABLE?
Unfortunately, it is not only hot and itchy, but it is so heavy and sits on my forehead in such a way that it gives me a massive headache every night, despite copious amounts of ibuprofen. As if the banged up knuckles and bruised knees weren't suffering enough for my art!


I thought it might be fun to take a little walk down memory lane...
let's take a look at my history in wigs.
Here I am as Rapunzel. In case you're contemplating making a long braided wig out of felt let me give you these sage words of warning: Felt is Heavy. We did have a lot of fun with this wig, though, and another character not only climbed up them but would swing on them like vines. All the braids were attached by Velcro, so could be "cut" off at each performance. I have to say, though, that I was outshone by the pink wig on my evil stepmother.


My first REAL wig was for Anything Goes. This is where I learned that wigs are really not as fun and easy as I thought they were.
(excuse the hands. we were modeling the very difficult "sunshine, rain" dance maneuver)


One of the dresses I wore for that show looked a lot like one worn by Princess Leia, so we thought that my wig should look more like this...
Help me Obi Wan. You're my only hope.

In Richard III I wore a hairpiece as Queen Elizabeth. My hair was short at this point, so we curled the pieces around my face, and attached the hairpiece on top. During one performance as I was arguing with Richard the hairpiece started to come loose, and I finished the scene holding it onto my head. I should have just taken it off and thrown it to the floor.
In that same Shakespeare fest season I played the hostess in a 60's version of Two Gents.
You've seen my angel wig from Angels in America
But I also wore this wig as Sister Ella Chapter. Not a great color or fit, but that's OK as in the script there's a reference to her wig being crooked.



As I was writing this I realize that I don't have a picture of me wearing the Queen Elizabeth wig from a living history piece I did. Hmmm....





Tonight is our final dress rehearsal, and I'm hoping we'll actually make it through the run without having to stop for technical difficulties. And that I don't fall on the floor. Again.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am surprised that wigs are so common because I wouldn't think specific hair was that important.

I know when my sister was bald, she wore her wig as little as possible.

Hoping your rehearsal goes well and you don't get bruises on top of your bruises.

Catherine said...

I love it! But I'm sorry about the headaches. :(

Chantal said...

very interesting!

kayerj said...

An interesting wig history. Especially as to how each wig transforms the character and places them in a moment of time and history. It also looks as though the wig helps define personality from a distance. I'm glad you are willing to suffer for your art. I would love to watch you dance.

Amy Y said...

You are so photogenic!
It's fun to see you in all those different hairstyles!

Alex Elliot said...

I always wondered how people got their hair flat enough under a wig so that the wig doesn't stick up.

flutter said...

you are freakin adorable.

Jen said...

What fun to see your evolution in wigdom (and roles)!

Kyla said...

Awww, I love this.

Mad said...

Those pictures of you in Anything Goes are fantastic. Well, they are all fantastic but esp the ones from Anything Goes.

And now, after encountering success with Bea, I will begin my efforts to get you on Twitter. C'mon, be a joiner.

Louise said...

The current wig IS cute. The headache would be a problem, however. You are a trooper!

Chaotic Joy said...

How adorable are you. I also loved your Monday Mission. I love seeing you in costume!