From restyling recycled wigs to sweat-proof stage makeup, discover how our Wigs & Makeup team are bringing the fairytale magic to our autumn tour of Cinderella.
On stage, it may look like effortless romance, but an incredible amount of work is happening backstage transforming dancers into the iconic characters that you know and love, while ensuring they feel comfortable and secure throughout the performance.
Take a behind-the-scenes look to see how our Wigs & Makeup team is getting ready to take Cinderella on the road.
Cinderella's Fairytale World
Our Wigs & Makeup department plays a key role in Cinderella’s transformation from ‘rags to riches’ throughout the story.
At the start, Cinderella is deliberately muted, wearing softer makeup and a practical hairstyle that reflect her dishevelled life. By the time the Royal Ball arrives, she wears bold makeup, with a deeper lipstick and darker eyeliner to make her features pop. Her hair is also much neater, pinned up with a sparkling tiara firmly in place. This visual difference creates a clear contrast between the restrictive life with her Stepmother and the freedom that awaits beyond it.
Cinderella's soft elegance is opposed by the exaggerated theatricality of her Stepsisters. Makeup is used to exaggerate expressions and their wigs are styled in a more comedic fashion. This also allows the characters to have the same impact for all audience members, from the front row of the stalls to the back of the balcony.
For characters such as Cinderella’s late Mother, who in this production plays the same role as the much-loved Fairy Godmother, the use of body shimmer and sparkles creates the feeling that there is magic in the air.
Prep is Everything
Wigs need to be fixed in place to endure the many pirouettes, lifts and jumps that the dancers will perform. Therefore, wig preparation is a vital step in ensuring that they stay on properly throughout the show.
Before the wigs are placed, natural hair is flat braided or pin curled, creating a textured surface for the wig to be pinned. Wigs have delicate lace fronts that are handmade to replicate the dancer's hairlines, making them look realistic and seamless. These are secured down with a special adhesive for maximum stability.
In terms of makeup, performers wear a much heavier face of products compared to an everyday look. The colours are often more dramatic, using brightly coloured blushes, deeper bronzers and intense lipsticks to help facial features stand out underneath the bright stage lights.
Many shows also require quick changes, where dancers might need to change their hair and makeup in a short amount of time. To make sure quick changes run smoothly in every performance, several backstage crew members remain hidden in the wings with all the tools necessary to help dancers go from one look to the next in the blink of an eye.
The Touring Challenge
Many of the wigs for Cinderella have been borrowed from Milwaukee Ballet. After a long journey across the Atlantic, our team has been working to get the wigs ready for our dancers, as well as making new ones to keep up with the demands of the tour. For a production as big as this one, it’s important to have hairpieces and wigs that fit our dancers properly but can also be used across multiple casts.
After each performance, the team will go through the routine of restyling and resetting any areas that might have come loose during the show, making sure each wig is as good as new for the next performance. This can be an incredibly quick turnaround when we have a matinee performance followed by an evening show. So, although we don’t always get to see the breadth of their work, these rapid transformations really showcase our Wig & Makeup team’s exceptional skill and talent!
Sustainable Stagecraft
Through our commitment to the Theatre Green Book, we are doing as much as possible as a company to be environmentally aware, including more sustainable practices when it comes to creating wigs.
All the new wigs for Cinderella are being made with longevity in mind, and will be repurposed for future productions. Not only will this save our team time, but it also means we can build a larger collection of wigs that can be reused for multiple shows. Perhaps you’ll see a wig from Cinderella make another appearance in Wuthering Heights next spring!
Experience the Magic
Behind every enchanting moment in Cinderella lies the quiet mastery of our backstage team. Through meticulous craftsmanship and technical precision, they ensure the fairytale magic shines brilliantly in every venue we visit.
Don’t miss your chance to see this spectacular production for yourself this autumn in Nottingham, Newcastle, Norwich and Leeds.
Wigs photos by Colleen Mair and Harriet Rogers. Production image by Rachel Malehorn, courtesy of Milwaukee Ballet (2024).
