Theatre Design & Technology - Feb 1968 - 28

BOOK REVIEWS

Thomas Watson

Books Received: (Persons wishing to review these or
other appropriate new book titles should contact Associate
Editor Thomas Watson, University Theatre, University of
Delaware, Newark, Delaware.)

Bablet, Denis. Edward Gordon Craig
Brooke. Iris. Western European Costume"
Cassi-Ramelli. Antonio. Edifice per Gli Spettacoli
Deutscher Normenausschuss. DIN Standards Yearbook; English Translations of German Standards
Educational Facilities Labs. Six Designs for College Communications
Centers
Erickson. Janet. Block Printing on Textiles
Fielding. Raymond. The Technique of Producing Special Efiects in
Cinematography

Hartnoll. Phyllis (Ed.). The Oxford Companion to the Theatre
Hobbs. William. Stage Light
Kohler, Carl. A History of Costume
Laliberte. Norman and Sterling Mcllhany. Banners and Hangings
Laver, James. Costume in the Theatre
Lewis, Bruce. The Technique of Television Announcing
Lounsbury. Warren C. Theatre Backstage from A to Z
Mascelli, Joseph. The Five C's of Cinematography
Nicoll. Allardyce. The Development of the Theatre (Rev. Ed.)
Paliffy·Alpar. Julius. Sword and Masque
Perronet, Philippe. Practical Stage Makeup
Prisk. Bernice. Stage Costume Handbook
Rahill, Frank. The World of Melodrama
Rambartre, Pierre Louis. The Italian Comedy
Rennert. Hugo Albert. The Spanish Stage in the Time of Lope de Vega
Smith. Charles. Student Handbook of Color
Sumner. Mark. Producing America's Outdoor Dramas
Theatre Arts Books. Theatre Technician's Almanac

COSTUME DESIGN AND MAKING
by Motley
foreword by Peggy Ashcroft
New York: Watson-Guptill, 1965.
144 pp., 99 ills., biblio., index, $10.00
Three outstanding contemporary theatre designers, Sophie
Devine, Margaret Harris and Elizabeth Montgomery, have
written a handsome and enjoyable book which is significant
for its serious approach. While others will find the book
profitable, it is intended for the student of costume design
whose standards are professional. Unlike so many other costume books, it refuses to give helpful hints for the designer
of the eighth grade nativity play. Nonetheless theirs is not
an austere professionalism, and indeed the book is inspirational in that an infectious excitement and enthusiasm run
through the authors' description of the various, even tedious,
tasks of the designer. Their stated intent is to explain in
detail the methods and techniques that they have found advantageous. Their material covers the whole scope of the
designer's work, from the initial reading of the script to the
director's final approval of the finished costume.
In the section on padding and the placement of seams for
different kinds of characters and periods (a section in itself
noteworthy because it is a subject not treated in this way
anywhere elsel. they relate from their private collection of
nightmares the difficulty of transforming Rex Harrison into
Henry VIII.
But the designer is not always faced with such monumental
problems. Often his work involves subtle, almost imperceptible details which are nevertheless crucial to his basic purpose of interpreting character in design. The authors describe
a fine example of this process in their own experience; they
show how the theoretically identical Russian uniforms which
tend to make a production of The Three Sisters look like an
officers' mess were effectively varied by the height of collars, position of buttons, and trouser and sleeve lengths.

Half of the book is devoted to colored and black and white
illustrations of designs by Motley and about twenty other
British and American designers. The sketches chosen show
fine variety in historical period, type of theatrical production,
character, and sketching techniques. Accompanying notes on
fabric choices and execution provide additional information.
I would have liked to see the sketches for those costumes
which appear in the photographs, so that the transition from
plan to realization could be traced. I might also unreasonably
have wished to see all the sketches for a single production
in order to gain an idea of the harmony in a total design.
For the designer reaching for professional standards, Motley
has produced an enjoyable book which, while not insulting
his intelligence, provides many excellent methods for his
creative improvement. Perhaps one of the most illustrative
examples of the exacting attitude to their work is the devotion of two chapters to the meaning and making of props;
those parts of the costume which are often neglected in
amateur design but which, the authors stress, are essential
to the total effect and must therefore be precise in idea and
execution. But artists of Motley's calibre are not pedantic
and remind the aspirant designer that the success of his
work ". .must ultimately depend upon his own ingenuity,
and his capacity for hard work, originality and talent." Their
own success, both as designers and authors, is the best
illustration of their precept.
Esther Kling
Program in Theatre
S.U.N.Y. at Buffalo

They also give advice on sketching materials and techniques,
color schemes, dyes, aging, lighting, and fabrics; such information is invaluable coming, as it does, directly from their
own experience. However the chapter on the influence of
history and architecture is disappointing because the authors
attempt to give a history lesson in miniature and only succeed in being sketchy and pedestrian.

THEATRE DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY I USITT

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Feb 1968