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Ahead of Denver performances, "Some Like It Hot" cast and crew share peek at 1930s glam costumes
Ahead of Denver performances, "Some Like It Hot" cast and crew share peek at 1930s glam costumes
Ahead of Denver performances, "Some Like It Hot" cast and crew share peek at 1930s glam costumes
Ahead of Denver performances, "Some Like It Hot" cast and crew share peek at 1930s glam costumes
The cast and crew of Some Like It Hot are preparing for their first stop in Denver, as the musical comedy is set to play the Buell Theatre starting July 8. Ahead of their Colorado visit, CBS News Colorado was taken behind the scenes of their production in Philadelphia. There, we took viewers to the wardrobe department to see how a tale from the 1930s is brought to life on stage each night.
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Star dresser Jeremy Davis Towle and actress Leandra Ellis-Gaston paired up to show off some of the most popular outfits from the show.
"My favorite one is the 'Some Like It Hot' performance outfit. This costume is all hand-beaded. This is actually the most expensive costume in the show," Towle said.
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The dress he was referencing cost more than $7,000 to make due to all of the time spent on customizing the beading.
Ellis-Gaston described her favorite costume as a blue jacket and dress that her character, "Sugar," wears at the beginning of the show.
"It is a simple blue coat and blue dress. Which seems so simple, but the fur is drama. We love drama," Ellis-Gaston said.
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Costume designer Gregg Barnes helped bring audiences into the 1930s era in the musical by creating costumes that were lively today but also true to the era of decades ago.
"What I love about Gregg Barnes is, even though these costumes were designed for the original Broadway company, he made sure they were tailored specifically to us on tour," Ellis-Gaston said. "This gets me right into the time period."
Ellis-Gaston said it made her job easier, portraying a character from long ago, by being able to wear a costume that equally does its part to transport audiences back in time.
"I feel like they nailed the characteristics of Sugar in every costume for her," Ellis-Gaston said.
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Towle said some of his favorite aspects of the costumes are actually in the smaller details. That includes parts of dresses that were hand dyed and shoes that were custom ordered. He also loves to acknowledge the custom made flowers that accent some dresses, as they were made by a talented peer who passed away.
"The flowers here were made by a gentleman who is no longer with us, unfortunately. So, we can't get any more of these. But, they are beautiful," Towle said. "I always want to talk about them because he did a great job with these."
During the show, there are 166 costumes that are seen on stage, and the fastest costume change takes place in less than 10 seconds.
"In the finale change, there are 19 changes happening within three minutes," Towle said. "The fastest is in 30 seconds, and (Ellis-Gaston's) is the longest with three minutes."
"Sugar Cane needs to take her time. Let the people wait," Ellis-Gaston said as she laughed.
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Ellis-Gaston said she also loves a silk gown that is seen on stage as her character is finding love. The back of the dress exposes more of her back, which has inspired Ellis-Gaston to try and complement even more.
"Just to be clear, I am in the gym so my back can look right for this. It is not for me, it is for Gregg Barnes," Ellis-Gaston said.
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Some Like It Hot plays the Buell Theatre July 8 through the 20. For more information on tickets, visit the Denver Center for the Performing Arts online.
CBS Colorado is a proud partner of the DCPA.
