Marie Antoinette was a fashion icon: she set trends both cultural and political, defined glamour, and looked gorgeous while doing so. Costume designer Anka Lupes (@ankalupes) chatted with Director of New Work and FEED, Raphael Martin (@SohoRep), about her design process. This is the first in an occasional series interviewing creatives attached to MARIE ANTOINETTE.
@SohoRep: Hello @AnkaLupes! Anka: Did you have a relationship to the historical character before you started work on the play?
Anka Lupes, Costume Designer for MARIE ANTOINETTE
@AnkaLupes: Yes, I have an interest in history; [I used] biographies and movies as research in depicting the life of the French court.
@SohoRep: What new research did you do for these designs?
@AnkaLupes: [I looked at] contemporary haute couture to match the contemporary language of the play.
Research image for the character, Axel Fersen
@SohoRep: Which of the David Adjmi characters was your fave to design (I seem to remember you liking Louis?)
@AnkaLupes: You are right — besides [my] ongoing fascination with Marie; Louis XVI
Anka’s sketch for Louis VII’s costume
@AnkaLupes: You cannot help feeling for his confusion and pain of not being capable to take decisions.
@SohoRep: Tell us about that RED DRESS!
@AnkaLupes: Marie’s dress is not only a symbol of excess, but also a symbol of her internal state.
@SohoRep: What would you say is Marie’s internal state?
@AnkaLupes: Marie is caught in the waves of a life that was created for her, she is disoriented.
@SohoRep: AnkaLupes how did you come to costume design?
@AnkaLupes: My long time passion for theatre, the excitement of bringing to life on stage, and the characters onstage
@SohoRep: Thanks to MARIE ANTOINETTE costume designer, @AnkaLupes for a nice chat. #behindtheseams
[Next up: Assistant Director Josh Gelb, Monday November 4th at 2:30pm]
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