costumes galore

Most theatre departments and companies have what you call costume storage. And most of these costume storage spaces are full of costumes. Go figure. However, I think you would be surprised by just how many costumes there actually are. At least I was when I saw Utah State's costume storage. I guess I would have to describe most costume shop people as ... pack rats ... They save everything because they never know when they are going to need it again.

Last year Utah State got a new costume shop adviser. I think she has the same response as me when she saw the costume storage ... because seriously, there are a lot of costumes. This year, she approached my husband about having a costume sale to get rid of the excess of costumes. They would split the profits with TSA if they helped out. They agreed and the sale was on.

When I first heard about the idea, I thought it was great but I didn't think it would be a huge success. But with Halloween right around the corner, maybe it would strike up some interest. TSA was in charge of promotion so they posted fliers around campus and around town. The costume crew spent hours getting ready. The night before, several students helped pack the dance studio full of ... stuff - clothing, purses, hats, shoes, and other random items.

The sale was last Saturday for six hours. We arrived in the morning and looked around. I was surprised by how much cool stuff there was. Everyone around me were trying hats on and getting excited over period clothing. I immediately found a hat that I fell in love with.

The longer we stayed, the more people showed up. It was great to see people interested. My husband and I search through everything. It felt like an awesome yard sale, except it had items from the last few decades ... and everything was ten dollars or less. We found a few great items but sadly didn't have enough money to pay for it all. So we put it aside and left to grab some more dough. When we came back later that afternoon to pay and help clean up, so much was missing! The costume shop adviser said they had a steady stream of people all afternoon ... and that sometimes it got so packed that you could barely move around. She had also dropped the price of everything to twenty cents. Twenty cents! My husband and I found a few more things to buy at that price.

Overall, it was a huge success! The department sold over 80 percent of the items and made some room for more costumes in the future. The costume shop adviser wants to do this again in the Spring. If she does, you won't want to miss it.