The costumes behind Josephine Wants to Dance
The brilliance of Josephine Wants to Dance wouldn’t be complete without its stunning costumes – from Josephine's tutu-tastic to the lyrebird’s striking feathers. We had the opportunity to interview Set and Costume Designer James Browne to hear how he brought these unparalleled costumes to life.
What was the inspiration for the costume design in Josephine Wants to Dance?
The inspiration for Josephine Wants to Dance comes from a mix of Australian influences and showbiz. Within costume design, it’s very stylistic, referencing Australian flora and fauna but done in a hyper-theatrical way. Inspirations come from Broadway musicals and traditional ballets, blending those styles with the Australiana that we know and love.
How did you adapt the picture book to the stage show?
The process normally starts with me reading the script and taking inspiration from the illustrations in the book, as well as researching the actual animals, plants, and the world Jackie French created.
From there, I meet with the director, and we collaborate on creating the world of the piece and how that looks. It was a great collaboration, drawing from our research, mood boards, drawings, and sketches of the designs, characters, and set. We worked everything together to form the overall visual world for the show.
It’s also important for the costume designer to collaborate with the performers. We need to make sure they can move comfortably in the costumes and quickly change from character to character during the show.
What are the most impressive costumes in the show?
The most impressive costumes in the show would have to be the lyrebird costumes. They’re based on grand Las Vegas showgirl designs but done in a lyrebird style. These costumes are big and cumbersome for the performers to wear, but they have an amazing impact.
