Carbon Costume

Usnavi de la Vega (Anthony Ramos) is the main character and narrator in the movie musical, In The Heights. His name comes from the first sight his parents saw when they arrived in America: a ship that said “US Navy.” After the passing of his parents, Abuela Claudia, the beloved neighborhood matriarch, practically raised him. He owns a small bodega in Washington Heights, but his dream is to move to the Dominican Republic. It’s no secret Usnavi is in love with Vanessa. You may recognize Ramos from his role in Hamilton, where he starred alongside Lin Manuel-Miranda, who composed and wrote both shows. In addition, Manuel-Miranda originated the role of Usnavi on Broadway.

Sarah Brightman is best known for her music but she’s also taken a turn as an actress, most notably as Blind Mag in “Repo! The Genetic Opera”. An opera singer under a lifelong contract for the use of her bionic eyes.

The film has a very specific aesthetic and Mag’s costume is an excellent example of it. Large fake lashes, black lipstick, face paint, and white body paint copy her ghostly coloring while black thigh high boots, black fishnets, a black choker, and black wig make up the details of her look.

A little DIY is needed for the main portion of Mag’s outfit. Red and black feathers can be glued around the top and bottom of a black corset using Fabric Fusion glue. And though she doesn’t technically wear one in the film, a short black athletic skirt worn underneath the bottom feathers gives you more space to attach the feathers too and offers more coverage. Finally, a gauzy black shawl mimics the last of her costume.

The Criminologist (Charles Gray) serves as the narrator for the Rocky Horror Picture Show. He recounts the story leading to Brad and Janet‘s mysterious disappearance upon visiting Dr. Frank n Furter’s castle. He also teaches the audience how to do the time warp. Common audience participation lines comment on how he has no neck.

Rich Goranski is a character in the musical Be More Chill. Before taking the SQUIP, he was rather shy and unpopular. However, once under its influence, he becomes a bully. His newfound confidence quickly becomes arrogance, and he purposely terrorizes the other students. Rich used to torment Jeremy Heere, but they later become friends once their SQUIPs are synced up. In “The Squip Song,” Rich mentions that he was suicidal before obtaining the SQUIP, and that the SQUIP fixed all his problems as soon as he took it.  He is also openly bisexual. Gerard Canoncio portrayed the character in the original Two River production as well as in the Broadway transfer.

If you haven’t seen Grease by now, you’re missing out. Not only are the songs catchy and the lines almost infinitely quotable but the costumes are iconic. And perhaps none are more so than those of the Pink Ladies. Rizzo, Frenchie, Jan, and and Marty are sort of the girl gang of Rydell High. They more or less pair up with the T-Birds, the school’s unofficial greaser representatives. Of course there’s Sandy Olson too, though she doesn’t join until much later. And, alas, she never gets that iconic Pink Ladies jacket.

You can get one, though! In fact a Pink Ladies Jacket is more or less the one piece you absolutely need in order to pull of this costume. All of the girls change their clothes throughout the movie but that is one thing they are almost never seen without.

To finish off the look you could choose a classic ’50s A-Line dress, pearls, heels, and hair bows like Frenchie wears. Just make sure you get one of these ’50s hairstyles going too.

Or you might prefer the more daring look of capris, flats, and a button down like Rizzo wears.

No matter how you style it, as long as you’ve got the jacket and the attitude, you’re a Pink Lady through and through!

Regina George is the main antagonist in the musical adaptation of Mean Girls. Similar to the movie, she is the queen bee of North Shore High School and leader  of the Plastics. She befriends Cady and takes advantage of her naiveté. According to her introduction in “Meet the Plastics,” she is a massive deal. However Janis warns Cady of Regina, saying she’s the “apex predator.” Regina herself several standout songs such as “Someone Gets Hurt” and “World Burn.” Taylor Louderman originated the role on Broadway. Her outfit is trendy, preppy, and of course includes lots of pink for Wednesdays.

Janis Sarkasian is a character in the Mean Girls musical. Similar to the movie, she is Damian’s best friend who marches to the beat of her own drum. Artsy and rebellious, she doesn’t care what anyone thinks about her. This sentiment is the main point of her song, “I’d Rather Be Me.” When Cady Heron arrives as the new student, Janis and Damian take her under their wing to seek vengeance on Regina George. Janis warns Cady not to be deceived by Regina’s niceness, as per her own experience. The only changes from the movie include the last name (Ian to Sarkasian) as well as her sexuality. Barett Wilbert Weed, who originated the role on Broadway, has confirmed that in her portrayal, Janis is a lesbian. This costume guide features a denim jacket to use as a base. Follow this tutorial,  where Ellis Claire Perlman will teach you how to paint and decorate your jacket to make it stage accurate. To achieve her punk makeup look, follow this tutorial by popular musical theater Youtuber Katherine Steele.

Damian Hubbard is a character in the Mean Girls musical. Similar to the movie, he is Janis Sarkasian’s best friend who is “too gay to function” (but it’s only funny when Janis calls him that). The two take Cady Heron under their wing to navigate the cutthroat drama of American high school. Then they realize they Cady can help take down the Plastics by posing as one of them. But when Cady starts to seriously obsess over social media and her image, Damian tries to knock some sense into her with the song “Stop.” Grey Henson originated the role on Broadway. The show modernizes Damian’s look with flannel and a drag queen t-shirt.