Carbon Costume

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.

Asaka is one of the four gods in Once On This Island. The people on the island worship her as Mother of Earth, praying for her to “grow me a garden.” Asaka helps Ti Moune navigate the wild in her song “Mama Will Provide.” Glee star Alex Newell played this role in the 2018 Broadway revival. Clint Ramos designed this uniquely original costume; his concepts were inspired by the aftermath of natural disasters in the Caribbean. To make the skirt like the design, wrap the tablecloth around your waist. Use the fake leaves and flowers to embellish the headdress.

Evan Hansen is the lead character in the musical Dear Evan Hansen. He’s a high school student with social anxiety, so his therapist suggests writing positive letters to himself. One letter gets mistaken for a suicide note from his acquaintance, Connor Murphy. To comfort the Murphy family, Evan forges e-mails between them. It’s revealed his broken arm was from falling out of a tree, possibly his own suicide attempt. Ben Platt originated the role, winning him the 2017 Tony for Best Actor in a Musical.  The show is currently running on Broadway at the Music Box Theater, where Jordan Fisher plays Evan Hansen. Wrap the gauze around your arm, and if you’d like, write Conor’s signature in Sharpie.

Katherine Plumber is a character in Disney’s Broadway musical, Newsies. She is a young journalist who writes the article that gets the Newsies in the paper. She becomes close with Jack Kelly, the leader of the July Newsboys strike, and they develop a romance. Her outfit retains the style of the early 1900s, which is when the actual strike took place. Notable actresses who portrayed Katherine include Stephanie Styles and Kara Lindsay.

Anya is the protagonist of the Broadway musical Anastasia. As in the movie of the same name, Anya remembers nothing about her past. She meets Dmitry and Vlad while trying to get tickets for Paris. Plotting to steal money from the Dowager Empress, who is looking for her granddaughter, the two men take her in, and select her as their Anastasia impostor. While teaching Anya how to pretend, she discovers who she really is, and also falls for Dmitry. With the music box, Anya remembers her family lullaby, “Once Upon a December,” and realizes that she’s actually Anastasia. At the end of the musical, she reunites with the Empress and donates the reward money to charity. She also gets with Dmitry and they leave Paris together. Christy Altomare originated the role of Anastasia on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theater.