Day 6: Measuring!!

Today I had a measuring sesh scheduled with some of the actors. It was all arranged pretty informally via facebook as they still haven't technically started term yet. We only had a few 'definite' yes rsvps, so we were shocked when a magnificent number of them showed up.
On reflection, there were a few things that could have helped the day go smoother:
1. If we'd known the sheer number of committed acting students that would turn-up we would have staggered the measuring times like normal, to avoid waiting around. As it was, I felt very guilty having them come in on their holidays yet making some of them wait for over an hour to get measured. I wanted to also paint a good first impression of us as a costume/set team... but maybe the disorganisation was to be expected.
2. If we'd been able to have the makers help us. Unfortunately both our lovely makers were busy that day- and I gave them very little notice, no it's totally understandable. As it was, being only myself, Emilie, and Sarah we found it difficult to get through any more than 2 at a time, and I myself was very little help.
3. If my email hadn't pretended it was working when in actual fact it was broken. I sent an email to Doug asking if the Studio Theatre was free for us to use for measurings as I knew the costume studios were in chaos. I thought he replied with the fact that 'he was in London that day' which made me presume he meant that therefore the Theatre would be free. However in real life, he never got my email, and it was late rbounced-back to me, he had in fact been replying to a previous email, and so that comment about London was totally irrelevant, thus leading to an awkward scnario of all the actors turning up to the Studio Theatre, and then us having to work out who was meant to be with us, find a space in the haphazard costume studio around all the 1st years, and set-up base- when none of us had really met the actors before.
All of these 3 things were fairly difficult to avoid. Maybe if I'd asked for a definite RSVP from each actor yes or no, and then recorded the responses rigourously, then I would have been able to create an actual schedule. Maybe if I'd given the makers more of a warning as to when the session would be, we could have had some extra help and therefore have been speedier. Maybe if I'd been able to find one of the other acting dept staff to ask about the studio theatre I could have planned our utilisation of space better.
But oh well,
these downfalls actually gave me some time to just mill around the actors who were waiting and see if they had any questions about design or nationalities or costumes or hair or whatever... and it was good to try and get a mental picture in my head of who was playing who.
The measuring session also gave us an opportunity to try the cream jodhpurs on the correct actor. This is the result:

 Obviously, as we already knew, they'd need to be taken-in A LOT. Specifically round the bum, the inner leg and the waist. Having talked to Helen about altering them, she's happy to let us do what we want with them as she thinks whatever we do will probably make them more wearable and therefore for valuable items to have in the Costume Store. I then had a chat with Lucy- one of the makers, to see if she thought it was doable. Following these conversations I would say that we can officially cross these Jodhpurs off of our list of things to source.... and add them to the never-ending list of thing that need adapting.
Unfortunately, some of the actors that we desperately needed sooner rather than later, were the actors that didn't turn up. We really needed Conrade so that we can order the chef jackets either tonight or tomorrow. We also really could have done with the girls playing the Watch, as we need their measurements as part of the set to send to Hirearchy for sourcing tomorrow.
I think the plan is that we try to get the actor playing Conrade to send us his normal shirt size so that we can calculate which size of jacket he'd require (S, M, L, XL). And as for the girls, I think it's likely to be a case of just getting the very smallest 'watch outfits' they've got, as they are all meant for men.
After the measuring, I had another brief meeting with Sarah just to discuss our plan of action. We will return to Hirearchy on either Friday or Saturday, and we will need to get the chef's jackets ordered by tomorrow. Sarah has been in contact with Denny's our potential supplier with some of the questions we were worried about, and when I got home I saw she'd been sent a very positive reply:
"Hi Sarah

Our DD15 comes long sleeved not ¾ sleeve.
Our size guide is on our Website under information- you will need to use the unisex garments size chart, I would say they are fairly roomy you can always exchange them if the size is wrong.

They are 280g 100% Cotton Satin Weave so they are quite heavy.

Anything else just let me know

Regards
Victoria"
Originally my main concern had been about whether the fabric was dyeable, whether it would be weighty enough, and whether it had cropped sleeves (because the picture leads you to believe so).
So after this response I think we may aswell go right ahead and order them as soon as we get a rough measurement through for Conrade. It was strange though because when I was looking for comparisons, I found this website:
http://www.lincsprint.com/servicewear.html 
featuring a 'DD15' jacket that was clearly exactly the same as the one on Denny's, BUT the photo looks completely different to the one on their website:
http://www.dennys.co.uk/Patrol-Jacket/groupproduct/410/
 

This is the picture from Denny's

So they both have the same code, the same description, but on different websites the visual-represntation of them is completely different!!  So this has slowed me down a bit as I'm not sure where to get it from. Denny's is trusted, and we've had good experiences with them, not to mention it's £3 cheaper each from them, but if I had to choose between the 2 jackets above, I would prefer the one on the right, which is from the other website- lincsprint. Although the collar is nicer on the left one....
So tomorrow the plans are as follows:
-10:10am: Paint browsing with Emily the Scenic artist.
-3:00pm: Meeting with Doug the director, to discuss a big long list of things.
-Later: Meeting with Pete the lighting designer.

So with that in mind, I spent the rest of the evening creating a moodboard and drop-box folder for Emily with all my inspiration photos for the blue set, and some images of tiles I like. I also need to make a list of all the questions I want to ask Doug tomorrow.
Just now, I did some research into the fabric for the washing-line. I was instructed by my tutor NOT to dye fabric, and instead to order flame-retardant display fabric from Macdougalls. However, I had some problems with this almost immediately when browsing through the website. So I sent Zoe, my Set Assistant, an email asking for her help and advice:
"Hi Zoe!!
How's everything going?
One of the things I really want to get sorted is the fabric for the washing-line. I think this is something we need to collaborate on.
I know Rebecca said 'don't dye fabric get it from MacDougalls' BUT
Firstly, I don't feel comfortable ordering from a website when I have no idea exactly how much the audience will be able to see through it. I'd need to see samples, and I doubt we have time to order them.
Secondly, all their sheer fabric is really modern-looking and shiny, which would totally jeopardize the look of the show.
Thirdly, the colours aren't right- which is a major major issue. As I've said previously, I will compromise on a lot of things, but not the colour. I really need the fabric to be the same colours as in the model or else the costume colours won't work either.
Are you able to help me? I just need a bit of research into what we could do.
I don't know if maybe we can source all the right sort of fabric in white, dye it, and then buy some sort of flame-proofing spray to treat it with or whatever? If you could look into some alternatives for me I would be forever grateful"
So hopefully Zoe may be able to come back to me with some bright idea about some things we could try, furthermore it might be worth mentioning to Rebecca the issues I've had and see what she thinks.
Zoe's a very practical-minded, clever girl, I have every faith that she'll think of some sort of magic to help us.

The very last thing I did was set-up another 'Much Ado' facebook group, but this time just for the creative team, so that w can easily contact one-another without bothering the actors.
For tomorrow, I need to put together a little swatch of the sort of blue I want ready for sourcing paint!