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The hardest show I have designed to date, The Hello Girls created numerous opportunities that inspired and challenged me as an artist and designer. Working at BVT, we collaborate to create incredible shows in a low budget, summer stock environment with quick turnaround times. For this show, it was important to me to get it right. I did extensive research, incuding making a trip to the National World War I museum in Kansas City; they were amazing and even let me have a closer look at some original WWI uniforms. They also have the uniform of Grace Banker, our hero and leading lady. At the museum, I learned that because the war happened quickly, not all of the uniforms matched in color and, unless the soldiers were higher ranking officials, they did not have their uniforms tailored to fit.
A major plot point in the show is that the women were not recognized for their service and, for several decades, did not receive veterans benefits. Because their story is not frequently told, the uniforms of the Girls would’ve been impossible to find in the range of sizes we needed. So, in just a few short days, we (myself and my collaborator/team mate Bella) cut, built, altered, and finished all five uniforms for the featured cast. We also collaborated with our props team to make the Distinguished Service medal Grace is awarded at the end of the show. I also reached out to one of our board members to embroider a replica of the armband and patch that Grace wore in real life. I am incredibly proud of our team for how everything turned out!
Another part of the design that I had a lot of fun with was the looks worn by the cast in the opening and finale. We wanted to honor modern day heroes so we included characters such as: teacher, nurse/medical professional, construction worker, sanitation worker, firefighter, and modern day military.