Props, Scenery, Costumes and Makeup: Angelettes for Whorehouse

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Angelettes for Whorehouse

Printed From: Community Theater Green Room
Category: Producing Theater
Forum Name: Props, Scenery, Costumes and Makeup
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Topic: Angelettes for Whorehouse

Posted By: katdavisfl
Subject: Angelettes for Whorehouse
Date Posted: 3/10/08 at 1:23pm

New to the forum...there's some really great stuff here!

I need to design and build six Angelette "mannequins" for a production of Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. I've tried to find pictures online, with no luck. Anyone have a suggestion?

Of course being community theatre, budget is always a consideration. And the director didn't like my idea of using real blow up sex dolls. ; )

Replies:

Posted By: pdavis69
Date Posted: 3/10/08 at 2:52pm

Talk with your director again. The sex dolls are cheap and readily available. We used one as one of the prizes in Assassins. The only problem we ran into was that someone kept undoing the bikini top we dressed her in. (I still swear by my innocence).

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Patrick L. Davis
Fort Findlay Playhouse

Posted By: katdavisfl
Date Posted: 3/10/08 at 3:59pm

Unfortunately our choreographer saw it staged with the dolls and has convinced the director that it was extremely creepy.

I have a few ideas, but I'm struggling between flexibility and durability, as they need to last through the rehearsal process and something like twenty shows.

I was thinking about using a marching band/drum harness as a starting point, as I thought it would fit in well with the marching uniforms the girls wear. Just need to come up with durable, lightweight materials for the heads and bodies.

Posted By: whitebat
Date Posted: 3/12/08 at 7:54pm

Not being familiar with this show, I don't know what the staging requires. I think you could make them scarecrow like, using nylons for the heads/bodies.

Posted By: katdavisfl
Date Posted: 3/14/08 at 11:57am

Yeah, I think that's the direction I'm going to go in. I've heard of the arms and legs being made out of accordian folds, but I can't come up with a material that would be flexible enough to hold the folds (card stock, etc.) but durable enough to last the run. And I certainly don't want to have to make more than six of these things.

Basically, it's three actual actresses that have a life-sized doll on either side of them as they go through a drill routine. There's a great clip on YouTube that shows the original Broadway production, but it's too fuzzy to see what they're made of.

Posted By: Topper
Date Posted: 3/14/08 at 12:29pm

Watching the clip it appears that the dolls are fairly flat and 2-dimensional. They appear to be supported at the waist (not the shoulders), the arms are fixed in position and the legs merely hang loose - without any articulation except for gravity & momentum.

To construct something similar, I would cut female torso silhouettes (hips, waist, shoulders, neck & head) out of thin plywood or other lightweight material (1/2 inch thickness or less). Have a volunteer lie down on the board and trace the shape around them.

Secure two of these silhouettes at the waist on either side of a board just long enough to accommodate the placement of your dancer between them. A belt or shoulder harness can be attached to the board to help the dancer keep the apparatus in proper position (without having to hold it up themselves the entire time). This harness can be hidden under the vests of the dancers.

Build up the silhouette's facial features (and other body parts) with papier-mache. Remember, the whole idea is to keep these as lightweight as possible. Paint the faces and dress them with wigs, hats, blouses & skirts. Stuff the arms with cotton batting or foam rubber and secure them in position.

Stuff flesh-colored tights with similar material and make fake shoes out of cloth (actual shoes would be too heavy and place more of a burden on your dancers). Attach these legs under the skirt to allow the proper clearance depending on the height of your dancers.

That's how I'd do it. I'm sure others will have suggestions as well. Good luck

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"None of us really grow up. All we ever do is learn how to behave in public." -- Keith Johnstone

Posted By: katdavisfl
Date Posted: 3/26/08 at 5:16pm

Great suggestion. I hadn't thought of building the body out of non-flex material. Probably can use luaun. Always have lots of that laying around. And I like the papier-mache idea for the faces...wasn't sure what I was going to do there, and that sounds like a great project for our younger volunteers.

Thanks, Topper!

Posted By: spikesgirl
Date Posted: 3/31/08 at 10:27am

Originally posted by katdavisfl

Great suggestion. I hadn't thought of building the body out of non-flex material. Probably can use luaun. Always have lots of that laying around. And I like the papier-mache idea for the faces...wasn't sure what I was going to do there, and that sounds like a great project for our younger volunteers.

Thanks, Topper!

We just closed Whorehouse and opted to rent out Angelettes from a rental company in Los Angeles Dirt cheap and we got them for five weeks! They were attached to poles and were floppy. Our costume designer decided that they were voluptuos enough and added pink ballons as 'supplement' beneath their cheerleader skirts. it was only too funny when, on opening night some of the skirts flipped up exposing their *ahem* padding. Best laugh we got all night! So, durning construction, if you decided to add 'dimension' be sure things are in place.

Charlie