1. Angel Fox
499C
3/17/16
Carrie: Stage Three Paper
The aftermath of Carrie was a relief to say the least. Opening a show in a month proved
to be the most difficult experience of my collegiate or design career thus far. I am both astounded
and proud that we were able to pull off such a spectacular show and it was a success thanks to
the collective effort and hard work of us all, that we managed it all. After all of the time and
extra hours I had to put into this show in such a concentrated time I can say without a shred of
doubt that I went out with a bang for my senior show design.
Ultimately, the show, over the month of planning and building, made a metamorphosis
into a realistic, thrift-casual motif. It is very similar to the hipster movement but with the thrift-
casual style the characters, though wanting to “fit in”, still held their own unique qualities that
helped identify their personality as a character. The final design deviated from the initial design,
by displaying more costume pieces to convey subtle passing of time and personality changes.
Not much was said from the respondent on the costumes but I take that as a compliment
seeing as a modern show can easily be torn apart by a stand out detail. Knowing that the
respondent wasn’t pulled out of the experience of the show to point out a costume detail assured
me that my design fit with the show well. They appreciated the usage of blood and stage effects
pairing with the climactic prom scene and enjoyed the fact that the quick change Carrie had to
the pre-blooded dress was executed “without missing a beat”. Aside from that the throw-back to
the chamberlain uniforms were,” iconic” and “nostalgic” to those who had read or seen the old
movie.
I feel as though a post-mortem would have benefited me, on an outside opinion of the
final image of the show. As for my opinion, the show was well executed in the time allotted, but

2. Angel Fox
499C
3/17/16
if given more time, I would have liked to put more attention to the character’s clicks and
personalities being conveyed through their changes. I would have also enjoyed, building a few
costume pieces that because of our strict time constraint wasn’t feasible.
From this experience, I have learned a great deal of trouble shooting schedules and
preparing for designer emergencies. I have also learned more about the design process and its
ability to change over the course of building, and how to take into stride the changes that process
make to an initial design. In the future, I would love to try another large show but for now, I’m
not certain that it is in my best interests as a budding designer, to take on as much as I did
through this journey anytime soon.
During my time at MSU, I have designed hair, make up and costumes, for two of the
largest, casted, shows in the departments recent years. What I learned from the design process
Oedipus the King, proved invaluably when I took on Carrie: The Musical. But much like my
experience before Oedipus, I don’t think anything could have perfectly prepared me for the sheer
demand of this show.
In the end, I did produce a wonderful looking show, but in my opinion, my design,
suffered slightly due to my inability to handle such a large cast and costume demand. I still have
a lot of management traits and large scale coordination, to learn before I ever tackle a job of this
magnitude again. Regardless, I am a better designer than I was before I started this show and I
have gained valuable experience because of this hectic and uniquely challenging show.