There is more to a great show than the singer or actor. Numerous people in the entertainment industry are often overlooked, but the Mercury is out to celebrate them.
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A great costume can really enhance a theatre show by adding depth to a character, while for aspiring dancers a poor costume choice can negatively affect the score in competition.
Katja Handt is a set and costumer designer/maker and regularly works for theatre companies such as Merrigong, but has also worked on a number of films like Mad Max: Fury Road and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.
The film work was definitely a highlight, Narnia was a great job, Handt said. I was head of costume props and the costume props is all the armour, the belts, a little bit of everything.
The first thing people see on stage or on film is the set and costumes, which she said sets the mood and should interpret the themes of the show.
When I see a show that I dont agree with whatever the concept is, it becomes like an eyesore, its really distracting, she said.
Handt, who originally studied in Germany, absolutely loves her job but said it is a small and competitive industry to get into mainly because of lack government arts funding in comparison to overseas.
You dont just go to university and start designing, you have to do a lot of jobs along the way, whatever pays, she said.
Meantime, Figtree grandmother Carol Hurt fell into costume making when her two daughters began dancing.
Nearly 40 years later and hundreds of Illawarra dancers have worn extravagant, glistening tutus made at the hands of Hurt including dance studio owners Vanessa Lee and Joanne Grace.
Joannes actually got her first tutu up on the wall, she said. I walked in and thought oh, shes framed it, bless her heart.
Back in the olden daysm she said, mums generally didnt work so would spend endless nights sewing individual sequins into place. However for Hurt she found her calling.
Id sit down and sew rather than read a book, she said. Over time I watch the girls as theyre little ... and I see my costumes reemerging they sell them on.
Especially for competitions, a good costume can pay a big dividend as judges often mark up a more intricate tutu.
Not only [that, but] the girl feels beautiful and she will dance better in something shes happy in rather than something just ordinary they like to feel special in it and you can see it on stage, Hurt said.
When she began the craft there were no over-lockers and lycra was very plain. Over time fabrics have become more bejewelled with fancy patterns.
Dancing is an expensive sport, Hurt said. I know a little one who paid $700 [for a tutu] they go up to $1000 no problem.
Behind The Curtains will continue next Wednesday.