USITT's 2007 Costume Symposium will include tours of areas such as the painting area at Disney, left, where a cast member is shown painting a Festival of the Lion King headress. Below is a half-scale muslin and mockup of Cinderella's gown.

Photos/Courtesy Jason Tollefson

Harmony McChesney
Assistant Symposium Coordinator

Costuming in the Entertainment Industry, to be held August 8 though 10 in Orlando, Florida, offers participants an inside look into the process of costuming in themed entertainment.

The 2007 Costume Symposium offers a variety of panels and tours that will provide insights into this segment of the industry including special considerations in costuming in the entertainment industry compared to costuming traditional theatre; the process of creating, tracking, and caring for the largest costume inventories in the country; the design process for themed entertainment costuming; how people are transformed into mice, ducks, bears, dogs, and other characters; and employment opportunities.

Professionals from area theme parks and entertainment venues including Walt Disney World, Cirque du Soleil, Universal Studios, Sea World, and Busch Gardens will present panels on:

• Overall Organization of Costuming
• Wardrobe Inventory Management
• Special Considerations in Entertainment Costuming
• Cosmetology
• Materials: Unusual, Developing, Buying, Testing, and Storing
• The Design Process
• Training and Employment in the Entertainment Industry
• Costuming at Cirque du Soleil

Backstage tours of Walt Disney World costuming areas will include:

• Workrooms, Dye and Craft Areas
• CADD Studio
• Buying Department
• Wardrobe
• Costume Warehouses
• Character Costuming

Participants will have the opportunity to view a show at Disney-MGM Studios from backstage, take a backstage tour of Cirque du Soleil's La Nouba, and have a panel discussion with members of Cirque's costuming and wardrobe staff. The symposium will be capped off with a performance of La Nouba.

The conference hotel is Disney's Pop Century Resort. Participants are asked to book rooms at the conference hotel. All bus transportation will depart from and return to this resort, and because all events take place in access controlled areas, participants cannot drive themselves to sessions. Reserve a room before July 1 by calling 407-938-4868 and reference Summer Symposium 2007.

Additional Cirque tickets for the 6 p.m. Friday Performance of La Nouba for those accompanying participants are also available.

Registration forms can be found on the Costume Commission's website which can be accessed through the USITT website. For more information, contact Kristina Tollefson, Symposium Coordinator, at 407-823-0233 or kristina@tollefsondesigns.com.

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