Let the right fashion in!

As a rule, when it comes to designing clothes, the approach in theatre is very different from the world of fashion. A costume designer in theatre has different objectives to a fashion designer. Their main aim is to help convey characters’ personalities in all their complexities within 1.5-2 hours of a play. Therefore, it is important to present a character visually in a way that would facilitate the audience’s understanding. This is the reason why theatrical costumes are often exaggerated to match the dramatic composition and the overall aesthetics of a play. Nevertheless, sometimes it is possible to see real fashion on stage. GAMAYUN was lucky enough to attend a play by PÁLFI GYÖRGY based on the famous romantic vampire thriller Engedj be! (Let the Right One In). Captivated by the play, we were utterly mesmerized by the stylish colourful prints, bell-bottomed trousers, cropped sheepskin coats, and jumpsuits with golden details. Yet, the true gem of Pálfi’s performance was the finest representation of Budapest nightlife to date: a guy in a psychedelic crimson macaque costume selling candies from his cargo bicycle, while listening to crazy techno. Engedj be! is a rare example of a play, where the audience can recognise contemporary avant-garde fashion in theatre costumes. We were very impressed by the shapes, colours and combinations of costumes in this play and decided to ask a few questions to the play’s costume designer Muller Kata.

- Amazing job, Kata! We truly loved your costumes! What was the task set by the director of Engedj be? What did you try to achieve while creating the costumes?

- I really liked the task, the same way as I liked the story, the place and the circumstances. It was our mutual decision with the director to highlight the actors out from the otherwise monochrome, “cold” setting. Obviously, using daring colours and shapes seemed to be the most beautiful solution. As the characters have been shaped during the rehearsal process, so have the costumes been shaped in our minds. Our plan was to make the clothes trigger strong emotions, so that the characters could create a special world – together with the whole visual setting of the play. We worked on this “world” until the very last moment.

I have never seen a play so many times. Day by day I was watching the rehearsals, watching the pictures and gradually “colouring” the costumes. Even the tiniest details were thought through.

- You mix many different styles in your costumes: from psychedelic to super edgy. Where did you draw inspiration from?

- I like healthy eclectics! We did not confine ourselves into an age or style, instead we created our own “Engedj be!” (Let the right one in) world, a fairy tale picture, where anything goes – of course only if things can fit perfectly in. It was an exciting task. My childhood and my present life is in it as well. Almost every piece was made specially for us. We were running to the sewing workshop, to the leather shop, to the tailor, while a sculptor was creating the monkey head for us… It was really exciting!

- What other works are you proud of?

- Me and a team of other creatives run a creative studio in Budapest, where we do a lot of creative work. We plan and illustrate pictures for movies, ads, animations. A couple of years ago we created a movie and worked as a visual director. In addition to coming up with a ton of places and settings, we also built enormous, working mock-ups as well. We enjoyed it a lot! I also worked as a designer in a huge production, where we had to create around 160 costumes, plus the complete graphical identity. Here again we had to create a fairy tale world!

#Lettherightonein #Engedjbe #Tripart #KataMuller