Carrie Robbins, who has worked on and off Broadway, visited Penn State York.
Costume designer Carrie Robbins shows a group of college, high school and middle school students how she designed a silk dance dress for The Alley Theatre's "American in Paris," during a talk she gave on Wednesday at Penn State York. A Penn State alumna, Robbins has designed costumes for on- and off-Broadway shows, including operas, for about four decades and has received multiple awards and two Tony nominations. (YORK DAILY RECORD/SUNDAY NEWS -- CHRIS DUNN)
If a costume designer dresses a character a certain way, and does the job well, then the audience should know an awful lot about him before he ever says anything, Carrie Robbins told students at Penn State York on Wednesday.
"You get to be a real problem solver, and you get to be a storyteller," said Robbins, a longtime costume designer for shows on and off Broadway. "What we do actually helps tell the story."
Robbins, a Penn State alumna, shared her own stories Wednesday afternoon in the Pullo Center before an audience ranging from sixth-graders to college students. She was later slated to speak at an evening fundraising event to benefit the Graham Entrepreneurial Leadership Program, according to a news release.
Students from Penn State's York and main campuses, Dallastown Area High School and York's Ferguson Elementary School gathered next to some of Robbins' creations on the Pullo Center stage as she talked about the design process.
She told the students about the lengths she went to to find pre-1920s Chinese brocade for a costume and about the challenge of designing a dress light enough for a dancer doing the can-can. She explained how she once used water and oil paints in her bathtub to give fabric a marbelized look, and how she came up with a solution for a character who had to spontaneously bleed onstage.
Ferguson Elementary brought students from its STEM (science, technology, engineering
and math) program, who are working on a musical this year as a way to include art in their studies.
Elijah Hunter and Frank Figueroa, both eighth-graders, asked Robbins for tips as they help plan costumes for "Seussical Jr." She gave them ideas like using a black leotard and tights they could paint for the Cat in the Hat and offered advice about slippers to use so that dancers don't lose their footing, Figueroa said.
"This actually excites us and gives us inspiration," he said.
Costume designer Carrie Robbins holds up her sketch of a yellow chiffon evening gown for The Alley Theatre's "American in Paris" alongside the gown itself during a talk she gave to students on Wednesday at Penn State York. Penn State alumna Carrie Robbins has designed costumes for on- and off-Broadway shows, including operas, for about four decades and has received multiple awards and two Tony nominations. Chris Dunn Daily Record/Sunday News (YORK DAILY RECORD/SUNDAY NEWS -- CHRIS DUNN)
The 13-year-old said his mom taught him how to sew, and he was raised around women into fashion, so that's why he wanted to be involved in Seussical's costume design.
Hunter, 13, said he was interested to see how Robbins turned sketches into the garments onstage.
"I've always been a fan of drawing," he said.
Students involved in Dallastown's "Plays and Playwrights" class and the school musical took away some pointers, too.
Senior Sam Anderson said the school is planning to produce "Into the Woods" and wants costumes to have a steampunk feel -- something they spotted in some of Robbins' works.
Haley Hostetter, a senior, said Robbins made her think about the symbolism involved in costumes, something she hadn't considered before.
Zaire Willis, a junior, said he learned that "there's more to the job than we think there would be."
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About Carrie Robbins
Carrie Robbins has been a costume designer on and off Broadway for 45 years, according to a news release from Penn State York. She has a bachelor's degree in art and theatre from Penn State and a master of fine arts in design from Yale University, according to the release. She was the recipient of the Irene Shaff Lifetime Achievement Award and has twice received Tony Award nominations, among other honors.
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