Cut your hair, bring your own shoes, do your own makeup: What we ask of actors
Introduction
We ask so much of performers. They are expected to carry the weight of their character and the narrative, to perform consistently night after night with the same energy regardless of what is going on in their lives, to improvise and adapt and meet the demands of the production and audience, director and other performers in all their variability. We ask them to put themselves onstage to be seen and critiqued, to do a physically and intensely emotionally strenuous job. These demands cannot be avoided. They are part of the job.
But so often we demand more than that. There is an unstated financial cost, carried more heavily by performers on low-budget productions who are already working for lower pay.
We often ask performers to do their own makeup and hair and make themselves stage-ready, even though these are separate skills from performance and require expensive products and tools. Many productions ask performers to provide their own shoes or supply some component of their costume. We may expect actors to get specific haircuts or maintain particular styles. Even when the financial cost of this is reimbursed, it requires time, skill, and labor from the performers that goes beyond the existing and already extensive expectations of performance. Hairstyling impacts how a performer is seen in their day-to-day life outside of the theatre.
Many of these demands are also unavoidable. Most productions are working within significant limitations on budget, time, and labor. But even when these demands cannot be avoided, we can handle them — and the people we are working with — with care, recognizing the extent and potential cost of what we are asking, creating alternatives when needed, and ensuring that we are treating performers equitably and not asking more of those who have less.
Major contributions to this section come from Jerrilyn Lanier’s Bridging the Gap: A Look into African American Hair and Makeup in Theatre.
Context and causes
Quite frequently, actors are expected to bring some garments or supplies from home to assist with costuming. There are generally two causes for this, which often overlap:
Limited production resources: limited or otherwise allocated budget, or limited time to fit a large cast
An actor who has needs which are “nonstandard” in some way, such as a performer with a particularly large shoe size or skin tone that doesn’t match the production-purchased makeup supplies. “Nonstandard” here really means “not addressed by default” and “unplanned for.” Actors who are “nonstandard” generally bear the brunt of limited production resources; for instance, if a cast is majority white, the production will likely spend its available hair/makeup supply budget on supplies for lighter skin tones and untextured hair.
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The context of the production is an important factor here. Whatever the scale of the production, it is critical to be respectful and conscientious of what you are asking.
On some productions, particularly community or educational theatre, it simply is not possible to supply skins, shoes, and other base pieces for every performer.
It may take shopping time, expense, and time/skill for alterations that is simply not feasible for that production.
Pants in particular may require several options be tried and rejected before finding something that works.
The fit of a shoe also relies on multiple measurements, not just shoe size, which is difficult and time-consuming to take in advance of purchase. Shoes are expensive to boot — pun intended.
With young performers, it may be difficult to take full and accurate measurements.
With a large cast, it may simply make more sense to ask actors to provide basic pieces they are likely to have at home instead of spending the entire budget on white socks and undershirts.
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“Nonstandard” performers
Stock
Supplying a production from stock or through rentals means that the garments that are available are generally fairly standardized. Costumes for performers whose body types do not match the stock will need to be sourced in another way, or altered, which may not be permissible if they are rentals.
Shopping
Commercial garments are also very standardized, and performers whose body types do not match the garments available in most stores will be more difficult to shop for.
They may need to be purchased at a specialty store, or may be difficult to thrift. Plus-sized clothes are often more expensive.
Garments may need to be ordered online and shipped, which adds additional time and expense.
Garments may need to be altered, requiring additional time, labor, and skill/capability in stitching.
A performer whose body type is in some way different from the norm will realistically require additional time, labor, and expense to costume.
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If the production provides hair/makeup supplies, they are also likely working from a stock.
That stock may not represent the needs of performers with textured hair or darker skin tones, especially since those needs are variable and one product does not fit all people of color.
There may be a limited budget to purchase hair/makeup supplies, and supplying for the larger group may take precedence over supplying for one individual.
Haircuts and styling can be especially expensive and difficult to place in the production budget.
inequity
What is inequity? Placing an uneven burden on certain people, particularly members of marginalized groups.
Expecting performers who are “nonstandard” in some way to supply more costume and hair/makeup components than their fellow cast members is inequitable.
It places a significant financial demand on some performers, particularly when talking about consumable supplies.
It also creates additional demands for skills, knowledge, and labor.
When marginalized performers are expected to teach the costume team how to costume, shop for, style, and support them, that is additional labor that is not asked of other performers.
If the costume or hair/makeup team is not trained and capable to style textured hair or make up darker skin tones, that places the responsibility on the performer themself.
Asking performers to bring their own items may be unavoidable. Being conscious and respectful in how you make those requests, considering who those requests are made of, and navigating the process with care and attention is always possible and always valuable.
Solutions and best practices
Build within your means.
It may be impossible to avoid requesting items from performers depending on the budget and other factors listed above. But this widespread practice places a particular burden on performers of color, performers with disabilities and nonstandard body types, trans performers, and performers living in poverty, and if adjustments can be made to other parts of the budget to reduce this burden, that is worthwhile.
We are all working within a limited budget. However, it is worth the additional expense and time to try to create a more equitable production. If you are making inequitable requests because your budget has been otherwise allocated, consider how you might adjust how you are budgeting the production. If you do not have the budget or time to costume according to your vision, you may need to adapt your vision.
Plan in advance.
Budget additional time and money, and hire appropriately if more labor or specific skills will be required.
Be realistic about the fact that a performer who is in some way different from the norm will require additional time, labor, and expense to costume. Budget for these additional expenses and necessary time.
Nobody should be an afterthought.
You can begin preparing for those “nonstandard” needs early in the process if you communicate with performers and the director from the beginning.
Costume designer Noël Huntzinger notes that drag in particular requires additional time and expense. If a role is cast in drag, structuring the budget to include the additional expense of specialty shoes and garments can happen from the beginning. The schedule might include more shopping time or time for orders to be delivered.
Send out introductory emails
Reach out to cast members at the beginning of the process to confirm whether or not they currently look like their headshot and determine if haircuts or styling will be necessary.
This also helps to make introductions and build relationships prior to measurements, which is an aspect of best practice for measurements and fittings because it helps ensure performers do not feel as if they are being touched, measured, and judged by a stranger.
Budget and plan for hair/makeup from the beginning.
Plan to purchase appropriate products for all cast members.
If a haircut or particular styling is required, this should be paid for by the production, not expected to be paid out-of-pocket by the performer. This is required for AEA productions.
Black hair styling may be more expensive than white haircuts, especially in predominantly white areas where styling is more expensive, and should be considered from the beginning.
Budget for time for textured hair. Salon bookout time for Black hair may be many weeks, and textured hair takes longer to style. Leave extra time in the schedule for this. Recently relaxed hair needs at least two weeks before it is ready to do wig prep so that it does not break. Inform actors of your hair plans as early as possible.
Many hair/makeup artists are not trained to work with textured hair or darker skin tones. Consider your own personal bias and lack of knowledge, and seek out additional training, such as Jerrilyn Lanier’s Bridging the Gap: A Look into African American Hair and Makeup in Theatre. If you are hiring hair/makeup artists for a production, ask if they are experienced working with a wide range of skin tones and hair textures, and hire people who are capable of working with your entire cast.
build a stock that reflects the diversity of your cast and the casts you want to see in the future.
Stock reflects previous casting. If the company is making new efforts towards diversity and hasn’t been especially diverse before, the stock may not suit your needs. Be conscious of this if you are planning to mostly source from stock.
Even if you have no people of color in your current production, you can begin stocking hair/makeup supplies for people with textured hair and darker skin tones as a default part of your purchases for each production to spread the costs out over time.
Create a product list to supply the production that includes hair/makeup supplies for people with darker skin tones and a variety of hair types.
You may not be providing hair and makeup supplies on your production. AEA contracts do not require that the production supplies “ordinary and conventional” makeup. However, if you are supplying these things for some performers, you should ensure that you are supplying them for everyone.
Products and tools will vary, just as for other types of hair and other skin tones, but some basic supplies can be provided in advance.
If you are uncertain about what to provide, ask performers what products they usually use so you can purchase them. This is preferable to asking them to provide those products.
Consider wig prep as well (pin curls are not a universal solution, particularly for textured hair).
Be conscientious and respectful of the demands you are making of performers. be realistic about what you are asking them to provide.
Do not ask actors to bring in things they do not already have in their closet.
Do not ask someone to make alterations to a piece for the production.
Offer multiple options and brainstorm with performers about what they could bring that is within the realm of the design.
For instance, you might ask for dress shoes, but they may have a pair of dark sneakers. You might ask for khaki, navy, or black pants, instead of just black.
This may mean making compromises on your design. Be flexible in response to what they already have.
An actor may not be able to loan an item to the production for the entire course of the run. They may need to take something home in between performances. This creates additional risk that something will be missing for a performance if they forget or are unable to bring it back.
Be conscientious of the psychological associations and meanings transferred to a garment worn onstage.
Costumes are storytelling elements, and they take on significant meaning. Wearing a personal garment onstage imbues that garment with a particular meaning, strengthened through repeated use over the course of the production, which may not ‘wear off’ after the show is done.
Clothes are tools for self-expression and identity, and symbols of self. If the garment is worn during a traumatic scene, or becomes closely associated with the character or a difficult production process, that may make it difficult to wear the garment again or to step out of a character and the emotional weight of the story.
Intimacy coordinator Sheryl Williams conveyed a story about a play where the main character was in an emotionally abusive relationship. In one scene, she wore a beautiful red dress for her birthday dinner. Her partner shamed and criticized the dress and her body in it, and strove to break her down emotionally. The actress offered to wear her own red dress onstage. Sheryl Williams suggested that she wear a dress that had no connection to her personal life, so that the character, the character’s experiences, and the performer could stay separate, and the actress’s favorite dress would not take on the pain of the scene.
While asking performers to supply something may be unavoidable, making them feel ashamed about their financial situation is avoidable.
Be clear in your request that it is a request, and that you are ready and willing to navigate alternatives.
If you are asking all performers to supply something like shoes, pants, or socks, do not simply offer alternatives to people who have raised concerns. This makes a major demand of self-advocacy. Tell everyone that if this presents a barrier to them for any reason, they can contact you. You might want to provide a deadline to reach out to you by to ensure you have enough time to supply.
Respond in a level and nonjudgmental way in a private setting. Do not act surprised if people do raise concerns. Avoid making comments about their financial situation. Do not be dismissive or insistent.
Where possible, avoid reimbursement policies. Provide money for services or products in advance to support people with limited funds.
Additional notes: Haircuts and styling
If you are requiring a particular hair style or cut, you must be conscious of the implications of that styling on the rest of their life, particularly for people of color.
Recognize that hairstyles, particularly hairstyles for textured hair, require maintenance, which in turn requires time, labor, and money.
This creates a major demand on the performer’s time during the run of the production, expects that the performer has the skills and capacity to do that work, and may represent an additional cost that should be included in the production budget, not out of the actor’s pocket.
Provide products and tools for hair maintenance.
Provide as much information as possible as far in advance as possible so that performers can develop their own wash cycle and hair prep routine.
Additional notes: Actor’s Equity
AEA has specific rules about what performers can be asked to provide, and what compensation must be offered. While many companies do not enforce these rules, it is important to know what they are.
Summary of standard AEA requirements for costume supply:
The production is responsible for supplying all clothing, including skins and shoes.
The production cannot require an actor to purchase any costume pieces for use in the production.
The actor may rent personal items to the production if they choose.
“Ordinary and conventional” makeup is provided by the performer, but all other makeup must be supplied by the production.
The expense of hair styling, cut, and color is the responsibility of the production, not the performer, including maintenance.