You ever wonder how the Utah Shakespearean Festival does it every year? The logistics of mounting a world-class theater event are staggering.

Just consider one aspect of the event: Costuming.

DramaBiz magazine, a trade publication for theater groups, talked in its July/August issue to costume experts who either work for or subcontract costuming for troupes nationwide - including Jeffrey Lieder, USF's costume director since 1986 (pictured at right).

For a major play like "Cyrano de Bergerac" (pictured at left), Lieder said, USF builds a third of the costumes, pulls another third from its wardrobe inventory, and borrows a third from other theater organizations - a nice trade, because those theater groups then borrow from USF.

And when it comes to cleaning the costumes, the rules are strict. For a union theater, rules say all costumes must be washed once a week, and garments that touch the body - socks, shirts, underwear - must be cleaned daily, for the health of the actor and the olfactory sensibilities of the front-row patrons.

Lieder has a 10-person crew that cleans the washable parts of every costume between each show - and gets the costumes ready for the actors. He also takes preventative steps: Removable dress shields for the women's costumes, and T-shirts under the men's doublets.

(Photos: Utah Shakespearean Festival)

Labels: Utah Shakespearean Festival