The Invisible Work of the Costume Performer

In the field of costume performance, the power of costume to create and communicate meaning and metaphor and enhance performer embodiment and audience connection has been evidenced and commended. There has been an abundance of research from both designer and performer perspectives, with a focus on the evolving relationship between the body and the costume. However, does 21st-century progressive experimental costume performance, which may include the use of unconventional materials, have the potential to impact the labour of the performer? Costume can both reveal and hide the body, arguably making the work of the body visible and invisible. This research article builds on the paper presentation “The Invisible Work of the Costume Performer”, delivered at the NOFOD Conference 2024. It examines the potential for costume to conceal the cognitive, physical, and emotional labour of the performing body and the resulting impact this may have on the performer.

Building on the understanding of Western traditional approaches and hierarchies in performance making and the complex relationship between dancer/performer and pain, the performance projects PING (2014), PANG (2021), and You Can Take Me Home Toni (2023) are interrogated. From the perspective of the performer, and informed by discussions with designer Daphne Karstens, Lorraine Smith analyses and contextualises these projects through the lens of feminist concepts relating to invisible work and emotional management. The article concludes by identifying possible solutions for making visible the invisible labour of the performer in costume performance and for the management of this workload on the performer’s body.