This document provides background information on William Shakespeare's play As You Like It for a costume designer. It summarizes the key plot points, historical period, settings, and main characters. The play is a pastoral comedy set in medieval times, following characters who are banished from the court and seek refuge in the Forest of Arden. It explores themes of love, exile, and finding purpose through hardship. The document also notes some technical considerations for costumes, such as layers worn in the forest setting and tight corsets of the time period.

1. Costume Designer
As You Like It
By: William Shakespeare
Sasha Ali

2. STYLE
• Pastoral Comedy
• The countryside lends itself a simplicity in that
there are only two settings involved: the court
or actual countryside and the Forest of Arden.
• It is more idealistic than realistic because of
its’ portrayal of the short suffering and quick
resolves when concerned with the matter of
romance and love.

3. Historical Period/Setting
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Medieval/Golden Age
Late 1598 to early 1600’s
Countryside
Forest of Arden(which is comparable to the
Garden of Eden).

4. Duke Frederick
Duke Frederick overthrew his brother
Duke Senior and banished him to the
Forest of Arden, taking away all his titles
and fortunes. He also took in his
daughter Rosalind, as his own daughter
Celia was extremely fond of Rosalind and
would rather live in exile than live in her
palace without her. He is selfish at the
beginning and then becomes selfless
towards the end when he promises to
give Duke Senior back his fortunes and
titles.

5. Celia/Servant
Celia has a special love for
Rosalind, and is willing to do
pretty much anything in order to
stay with her. When her father
banishes Rosalind from the
palace, Celia says she will go
with her and pretend to be her
servant. they disappear into the
Forest of Arden and Celia shows
love for her family through her
continuous loyalty to Rosalind.

6. Rosalind/Ganymede
Rosalind is Duke Senior’s beloved daughter
but chooses to stay with Celia in her palace
while her father is banished to the Forest of
Arden. She is living as a Lady, and
surprisingly holds no hate towards Lord
Frederick for usurping her father. She is also
one to fall in love quite easily, as we see with
her and Orlando De Boys. She is also
practical when she decides to dress as a boy
and name herself Ganymede when Celia’s
father grows tiresome of her popularity over
Celia’s and banishes her from his home. She
is aware of the dangers of the open road and
is willing to giver up her Lady lifestyle to set
out and find her father in the Forest of
Arden with Celia by her side.

7. Orlando De Boys
Orlando De Boys is the youngest of 3
brothers and the one who is treated the
least like part of the family. After his
brother Oliver inherits their father Sir
Rowland De Boys’ entire fortune,
Orlando is left with no way to pay for his
education or a lifestyle at all because his
brother chooses to treat him more as a
slave then any type of family. Orlando
feels he has no purpose in this life and
soon finds that his brother is trying to
have him murdered. With his loyal
servant Adam, he flees his home and
escapes in to the Forest of Arden to start
a new life.

8. Oliver De Boys
Oliver De Boys feels a sense of
entitlement as his father’s eldest son
and the main inheritor of his deceased
father’s fortune. He basically gives
Orlando none of the money which was
supposed to be for his life and education
and instead decides to have Orlando
killed. Even after Orlando flees in to the
Forest of Arden away from his life, Oliver
still wants to kill him and decides to take
it upon himself. As he is looking for his
kid brother, a lion threatens his life and it
is none other than Orlando that saves
the day. This rude awakening has given
Oliver a change of heart and just in time
because he instantaneously falls in love
with Celia.

9. Jaques De Boys
Jaques De Boys is the second eldest of the De
Boys’ brothers and seems to be the the
brother which Oliver favors since his is the
education which Oliver pays for. Near the end
of the play, Jaques finds everyone in the
Forest of Eden and gives them the news that
Duke Frederick has had a change of heart due
to a sudden recognition of his religious faith
and has decided to give Duke Senior his title
and all his fortunes which he wrongly took in
the first place. He seems to be a level-headed
nobleman who does not partake in foolish
the plans which his elder brother has first
devised.

10. Adam
Adam is the faithful servant of
Orlando De Boys and is
described as an older man since
he has served the De Boys
household for many years. He
knows that Oliver has treated
Orlando unfairly, and warns him
of Oliver’s pending plans to kill
him. Adam offers the little
fortune he has collected over
the years and tells Orlando to
flee. Orlando invites Adam to
join him on his journey in the
Forest of Eden to find a new life
all their own.

11. Dennis
Dennis is the faithful servant to Oliver
and notifies his master when Orlando
decides to fight Charles the wrestler.
Dennis is fond of Oliver and makes him
aware of the matter in the hopes that he
will talk his kid brother out of this
ridiculous idea believing that Orlando
will have no chance of beating Charles
and only will cause harm to himself.
Dennis has no idea that Oliver will use
this news to his advantage in his plans to
murder Orlando.

12. Touchstone
Touchstone is called the court fool, and is
basically only spoken to in order to get a laugh
or two. His remarks are clever and witty and
for this reason, Rosalind thinks it best to bring
him along when they decide to flee the court.
His remarks throughout the play are truly
comedic and bring about a sense of laughter
for the audience members.

13. Duke Senior
Duke Senior was usurped from his
position by his own brother Duke
Frederick, and is father to Rosalind. Any
normal nobleman would find being
banished to the Forest of Arden a hard
task, but Duke Senior seemed extremely
open to the idea. Him and his men were
like those of Robin Hood, surviving in
the wilderness with whatever the could
find and Duke Senior had little to
complain about. This shows his
character as a person who easily adapts
and is not phased by the amount of
fortune one can obtain.

14. Technicalities in Costume
• The outfits of the Golden Age and Medieval
times were hard to put on as they required
noblemen to wear layers in times where the
Forest of Arden was cold, and the corsets
proved extremely difficult but were required
for the dresses worn by the Lady’s. Costume
changes seem to be few, so getting in and out
in a timely manner should not be a problem
for this production.