Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer 
WINSTON SILL, Freelance Photographer - The evil stepmother tries to squeeze a foot into the golden slipper in Into the Woods before the Prince and his steward. The rich colours help to bring out the decadence of the sisters and their mother.
WHEN CINDERELLA, who is currently traipsing through 'the woods' at the Ward Theatre, downtown, Kingston, was ready to go to the ball, it was not her fairy godmother to whom she turned for her fancy threads. Instead, her gown was born from the imagination of Quindell Ferguson.
Ferguson is the creator of the costumes for the Steven Sondheim musical Into the Woods, directed by Norman Rae. The play marries four Brother's Grimm fairy tales and a new story of 'The Baker and His Wife' who are trying desperately to conceive a child (without engaging either the stork or their own anatomy). It takes various archetypal characters and brings them together into the magical woods where they encounter reality.
JAMAICAN PRODUCTIONS
Additionally, while most Jamaican productions (with the only consistent exception of the National Pantomime) has small casts, Into the Woods features 22 characters. Ferguson therefore has to outfit two princes, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, the The Big Bad Wolf and a witch, among others.
To many of us, costuming may be a simple act of throwing a few pieces of clothing together because, after all, actors put on their pants the same way everyone else does. Ferguson, however, explains that costuming goes further than even making sure that the clothing is appropriate to the production.
Sometimes a script may indicate what an outfit would look like, or at least its colour. There was at least one case in Into the Woods which makes specific reference to the colours that Lucinda and Florinda (Cinderella's stepsisters) should wear.
On other occasions, though, the colour of the outfits will have to be balanced with what the character is like, the actor's complexion and even the other colours being used in the production. Ferguson explains that one has to think of the costumes as individual pieces, but also how they fit in the group. "When everybody's on stage you have to think how the whole thing comes together to give you a pretty picture," she says.
RESEARCH
Costuming a production like Into the Woods also takes research. However, given the popularity of fairytales, Ferguson explains that the research took approximately a week and was in many ways a matter of getting in touch with that genre and going back to childhood stories.
Of all the characters, however, she liked dressing Cinderella the most, because Cinderella involved the most costume changes and fancier costumes.
Ferguson explains that she generally likes to create costumes for the 18th and 19th centuries, because of the use of rich materials.
Ferguson explains that ideally she would like to have a month to research and construct costumes, but that time span is never possible. Costumes are also affected by the money that a production has to spend. "In Jamaica I don't think we spend enough money on technical theatre," she says.
COMPLAINTS
Given the numerous complaints of theatre practitioners about the mounting costs of productions, this is not surprising. Ferguson explains, however, that to do a production like Into the Woods, ideally it would cost about $300,000 to $400,000. Of course, such budgets are quite unlikely to be given.
Even without an extravagant budget, Ferguson created the delightful costuming for Easton Lee's Tarshan Lace and Velvet. The play was recently performed by the Jamaican Youth Theatre, of which Ferguson is a co-founder with playwright Aston Cooke, who directed the production. Research for the costume for this production was harder, however, because of more limited information. Nonetheless, Ferguson gushes that she was particularly thrilled with how those costumes turned out, especially because the young actors wore them with such pride. She remarks that she also quite enjoyed creating costumes for another Norman Rae directed production, August Strindberg's The Father.
Costuming goes much further than putting together the right dress or pants. It involves jewellery, wigs and shoes, everything that creates the overall look of a character.
Additionally, she has to couple the fruits of researching a period with her own sense of style. Ferguson explained that creating the right shoes can be particularly tricky and sometimes she has to either engage the services of a shoemaker or pull apart an existing shoe, adjust it and put it back together herself.
COMMERCIAL COSTUME
Ferguson has been involved in commercial costume production, mainly for the stage, for approximately 18 years. When The Sunday Gleaner caught up with her for an interview she was in the process of settling in her business, Q&E Art and Craft, at its new headquarters at 2E Camp Road.
Ferguson explains that she intends to weave what is now the mass of confusion - sequins, feathers, beads and a plethora of other items into an expanded version of her business.
In 1986 Ferguson graduated from the School of Art at the Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts, having specialised in textiles.
Her time at the school had exposed her to the need for consistent supply of art and craft materials. On graduation she then went immediately into business and has since carved out a niche supplying art and craft materials to schools, while also designing and constructing costumes for theatre productions.
With the increase in costume parties, Ferguson has found that business is blooming nicely. "I didn't realise that people were so interested in costumes in Jamaica," she said. The interest, however, is there and she spent the Christmas season outfitting pirates, wenches and the like.
Depending on the demands of the person, renting a costume from Q&E can cost between $1,500 and $6,000. The maximum figure would entail renting a European type dress, accessories, hair and shoes. Currently, Q&E is able to outfit 40 people for a 1970s party and is looking to build the costumes for other eras.
Indeed, Quindell Ferguson has created a career of helping other people play dress-up. She has neither mice nor birds to help her and has to rely on pen and paper, cloth and thread, rather than a magic wand. However, her designs have helped to continue the magic and the mystery of theatre.
