Desdemona: a play about a handkerchief

OSU Student Directed and Designed Winter 2016 Show

Directed by Sam Zinsli, and Designed by Ruth Drake & Erica Rae.

Leading Actresses Annie Parham as Desdemona, Bria Love Robertson as Bianca and Diana Jepsen as Emilia.

"'Desdemona' tells the story of three of Shakespeare’s most memorable female characters while exploring themes of sex, violence, love and trust. In the play, set on the island of Cyprus, Desdemona, Bianca, and Emilia share their hopes, frustrations, and fantasies as rivalries emerge and tender friendships are forged" (Helman, Elizabeth. [January 15, 2016]. OSU theatre to present the haunting tale 'desdemona' feb. 4-7. OSU News and Research Communications, para. 5.).

For this student-devised play, most of the costumes pieces were pulled from our costume storage and altered to fit the theme of the show.  I altered Emilia's skirt by adding the bottom panel of fabric to it.  I altered Bianca's skirt from a practice skirt by adding an overskirt with ruffles, and then distressed it using a mixture of fabric grating and acrylic paint.  I took in Bianca's corset to fit the actress as well as added trim to it.  Finally, I created the wine-stained attachable stomacher for Desdemona's bodice with a mixture of alcohol inks, mod podge, and red cellophane clippings to mimic broken glass.