Make-up for Performances

[Guest ballet princess]

I was wonderig what the best way to do make up for a performance was. Thanks in advance!

[Victoria Leigh]

Well, balletprincess, that is really a general question! It depends a great deal on what you are dancing and where. For instance, if you are doing Nutcracker and dancing Waltz of the Flowers the make up would be quite different than if you are dancing Arabian. The size of the theatre, the kind of lighting, the distance from the audience all come into play here. If you are dancing in a room where you are very close to the audience you would wear less make up than if you are on stage in a real theatre with full stage lighting. So, find out the circumstances, and tell us what you are dancing

[Guest ballet princess]

its not really a certain role. See, its not for my dance studio its for school. I go to a performing arts school, and we had to re-choreograph the dance that they taught us. Which is to Vienna Waltzes. By the way, the stage is big. If it hepls to know what we're wearing: We're not 100% sure on anything yet but definetly the color burgundy. We're going for a very classy look, to match the music.

[Victoria Leigh]

You go to a performing arts high school and they don't teach you stage make up???

 

A full stage make up if the house (audience) is also big and if the stage has a lot of lighting. A full stage make up is base (foundation) preferably made for stage, not from the drug store unless it is Max Factor Pan Stick in Natural # 2 or DARKER, depending on your coloring. You must go darker than your skin tone if you are pale, and especially if you are blond or light brown or red hair. Eyebrows, eye shadow (browns are best to start with), eye liner (over and under the eye, liquid works best for the top line, false lashes, mascara (black), rouge or blush, and RED lipstick. If you have areas that need reshaping, a contour foundation or blush can be helpful, but you need to be taught how to use this.

 

Don't be afraid of make up! I find our younger dancers who do it the first time when we have make up class are very afraid to do what is needed, as it looks way too much up close. But you have to remember that lights, especially stage lights, wipe out your features, and also that the audience is a long way away!

[Guest ballet princess]

Thanks..... Well, the performance is in a few weeks so maybe they will tell us about stage make-up. And they just havent yet.

[Victoria Leigh]

They need to do more than tell you, if you are inexperienced. They need to have a class where you actually learn to do it. It takes practice, like anything else.

[Guest ballet princess]

You're definetly right. But one reason might be that my school is really new, only its second year!!

[Victoria Leigh]

Sorry, balletprincess, but that is not an excuse. New or not, if they know what they are doing they should be including make up in your preparatory work for performances. Perhaps it will happen closer to the show, but if I were you I would ask, and if it is not scheduled then request that it be scheduled!

[Guest ballet princess]

oh. Maybe I'll ask them if they dont show us by the end of this week.