Costume Design
1990 (made)
| Artist/Maker |
Designing animal costumes calls for imagination tempered with practicality. In Alan Bennett's The Wind in the Willows at the National Theatre in 1990, all the characters, while recognisably animals, were also human types and Mark Thompson's witty costumes blended animal with human characteristics. There was no use of 3-D heads; the animals were defined by make-up and evocative costumes. Young Billy and Tommy in their Norfolk jackets and lace up boots were Edwardian children, but their spiky hair and dark brown outfits were appropriate for hedgehogs. Portly the baby otter had a moustache to suggest an otter's whiskers while his 'fur' was an all-in-one swimming costume with buttons down the front.
The squaring of the top quarter of the design frames and focuses the characters.
The squaring of the top quarter of the design frames and focuses the characters.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Pen and ink, watercolour and crayon on paper |
| Brief description | Costume design by Mark Thompson for Billy and Tommy the Hedgehogs and Portly the Baby Otter in Alan Bennett's play The Wind in the Willows, National Theatre, 1990 |
| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Gallery label | 5
COSTUME DESIGN FOR THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS
1990
Animal costumes are a challenge for the designer, who must decide how to blend human and animal characteristics. Here young Billy and Tommy are dressed as Edwardian children, but their spiky hair and brown tweed outfits are appropriate for hedgehogs. Portly, the baby otter, has a moustache to suggest whiskers, while his ‘fur’ is a striped one-piece swimming costume.
Play by Alan Bennett from the novel by Kenneth Grahame, 1990
National Theatre (Olivier Theatre), London
Paper, pen and ink, watercolour and crayon
Designed by Mark Thompson (born 1957)
Museum no. S.845-1991
(October 2013) |
| Object history | The design was created by Mark Thompson for Alan Bennett's play The Wind in the Willows, after Kenneth Grahame, produced at the National Theatre in 1990. The production was directed by Nicholas Hytner. |
| Summary | Designing animal costumes calls for imagination tempered with practicality. In Alan Bennett's The Wind in the Willows at the National Theatre in 1990, all the characters, while recognisably animals, were also human types and Mark Thompson's witty costumes blended animal with human characteristics. There was no use of 3-D heads; the animals were defined by make-up and evocative costumes. Young Billy and Tommy in their Norfolk jackets and lace up boots were Edwardian children, but their spiky hair and dark brown outfits were appropriate for hedgehogs. Portly the baby otter had a moustache to suggest an otter's whiskers while his 'fur' was an all-in-one swimming costume with buttons down the front. The squaring of the top quarter of the design frames and focuses the characters. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.845-1991 |
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| Record created | May 22, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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