The costumes in the play "Wintertime" are designed to enhance the farcical and passionate elements of the story. In Act I, characters like Maria and Francois wear red hints in their costumes to indicate suppressed passion, while others like Frank contrast through formal attire. In Act II, after Maria's staged death, all characters mourn in black but wear red undergarments to represent embracing their passions openly. Costuming helps reveal characters' personalities and drives the plot complications through visually signaling emotions.

1. Wintertime
Charles L. Mee

2. Costume Design
The costumes used in the play should aid in indicating to the audience
that Wintertime is a farce. Costumes should to lend to the comedic
nature along with the plot complications, ridiculous situations, and
rapid movement all associated with farce. The color red is seen in many
of the costumes in the play to signify the passion seen in the group of
lovers. In Act I, a hint of red is found in some of the actor’s costumes
indicating the suppression of their passion. In Act II, all of the actor’s
have bright red undergarments showing that they have allowed the
surfacing and outward display of passion, allowing it to rule their
decisions rather than fight it.

3. MARIA
 Act I: Maria wears a silky red bathrobe. It should accentuate her
figure and maybe fall off of the shoulder in a provocative manner.
The color mirrors her passionate nature and the silky
material reveals her luxurious lifestyle and desire to
experience life to the fullest.
Accessories: Glass of champagne

4. M A R I A ( C O N T. )
 Act II: Maria will be dressed in an intricate, scarlet gown when she
reveals she is not dead. The red color indicates her outward
recognition and embracing of passions and the detail of the dress
indicates her as the facilitator in staging her death to help
everyone openly realize their passion and embrace
their lover.

5. JONATHAN
 Act I: Nice casual attire- incorporate some aspect from each of his
parent’s (Maria and Frank) clothing to show he is a product of their
creation. He wears red like Maria’s bathrobe and a collared shirt like
his father’s formal attire. Neither he nor Ariel
wear winter coats-the warmth of their passion
for each other will keep them warm.
Accessories: suitcase

6. ARIEL
 Act I: Ariel wears casual attire since she can with Jonathan
planning a holiday get-away. She does not wear a coat either despite
the cold. Her top will be made of cashmere mirroring her initial
soft, delicate speeches about love and the underlying love she feels for
Jonathan despite her anger with him.

7. FRANCOIS
 Act I: He wears a silky black robe with red trim. The
silky texture illustrates his slick character when dealing with
women. He is very smooth, always complimenting and
catering to the women.
Accessories: Glass of champagne

8. FRANK
 Act I: Frank wears very formal attire that contrasts greatly with
Maria’s that visually indicate their conflicting interests. He enjoys
classical music like Mozart or Puccini and would
fit in at Carnegie Hall whereas Maria is likes
exploring new things and new experiences.
Accessories: suitcase

9. EDWINA
 Act I: Edwina wears attire similar to the status Frank is wearing
indicating they met most likely through work since Frank and Maria’s
agreement for having affairs is “never where we live or with anyone
the other one knows but always out of town.”
Accessories: Ice skates and suitcase

10. B E RT H A & H I L DA ( AC T I )
 Bertha: Her outfit should be colorful showing her
strong, faithful, intense love for Hilda and her bright
personality that contrasts with her partner’s blunt nature.
 Hilda: Her outfit should be brown/neutral colors to convey her blunt
personality as well as her colder questioning of Bertha’s faithfulness(worried about
an affair with Ursula). She will wear red sneakers to show her sparks of
passion.
 Bertha and Hilda’s outfits should show their differences, but also
how through these differences they compliment one another.

11. ACT II
(JON AT HAN, ARIEL, FRAN K, FRAN COIS,
E DW I N A , B E RT H A , H I L DA )
 At the opening of the scene all of the above characters are
wearing black to mourn Maria’s death. The outfits will be
constructed simply and with velcro at certain locations so that
when they all rend their garments the costumes will not be
destroyed and can be reused.
 Under the black garments, all characters will be wearing red
undergarments show the revealing of their raw passion and
putting their feelings out in the open rather than suppressing
them.

12. BOB & STEVE
 Both Bob and Steve wear pizza delivery uniforms to indicate their
job. The delivery company name is Pizza Greece (Steve’s speech on
the Greek definition of love) and the logo is a heart with an arrow
though it (cupid and the concept of falling in love).
Accessories: pizza box

13. JACQUELIN E
 Act I(only appearance): Jacqueline wears a revealing lab coat
costume. In so freely talking about her relations with Francois, it
undermines her credibility as a professional doctor. In showing more
skin, her costume shows how she openly lays her passions bare for
others to see.

14. D EACON & JA N E
 The deacon wears a clerical collar indicating his position.
 Jane wears appropriate formal attire for the service and a large
cross necklace.

15. PHOTO SOURCES
http://deacondance.com/should-deacons-wear-the-roman-collar/;
burninsilence.tv; pantslessinboston.blogspot.com; www.123rf.com;
www.custommillerbox.com; www.acclaimclipart.com; www.ahfashion.com;
magazine.foxnews.com; www.freshpair.com; www.sweetcouch.com;
day2daywear.blogspot.com; guyism.com; www.lowpriceskates.com;
www.shutterstock.com; www.sterlingandburke.com;
newchimichurrigrill.blogspot.com; www.customshirt1.com;
www.aliexpress.com; www.belk.com; luluweddings.com;