About Me.

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I’m a Yorkshire based costume designer and maker. I grew up in a small historic town called Knaresborough where I studied and volunteered at church pantomimes and the local amateur theatre, before venturing to York, Leeds then Nottingham to follow my passion in the form of study. Throughout my education I studied art, textiles and drama but was never sure what I wanted to do. During my foundation diploma in 2019-2020, it all finally clicked. The freedom of the course and I was still lead to costume.

My journey really began at Nottingham Trent University, where I learned all the different aspects of the Costume industry. In third year I won the Playhouse Prize 2023, where I was awarded a placement at Nottingham Playhouse. Following my placement I worked temporarily at Northern School of Contemporary Dance, sustainably designing and sourcing costumes for a student performance. From August 2023 - January 2024 I have voluntarily been lead design and wardrobe at Frazer Theatre, Knaresborough for the annual pantomime ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’.

Experience

March 2024-April 2024

Badapple Theatre

I worked alongside the Badapple Team to produce costumes for the touring show ‘The Regalettes’. I worked closely with Kate Bramley and the designer Chloe Fundak. Most costumes were sourced through retailers after extensive research and conversations. I was in charge of ordering costumes and managing the costume budget.

August 2023-January 2024

Frazer Theatre

Working with the director (Dan Ingram-Brown) to agree and design for an amateur theatre pantomime production of ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’. I took on lead design and lead wardrobe role as well as being the backstage dresser, mostly for the dames quick changes. With this being an amateur theatre, the budget was small and so there was a lot of repurposing costumes and fabrics. However some costumes were pattern drafted and made by me.

November 2023-December 2023

Northern School of Contemporary Dance

A temporary contract working with a choreographer to design, source and alter costumes for a student performance ‘New Grounds’. The choreographer requested classic austere and inspired by the artist Paul Wiener. Also inline with the school’s procedure costumes were to be sourced as sustainably as possible, which I strived for.

June 2023-August 2023

Nottingham Playhouse

A short placement granted to me for winning the Playhouse Prize 2023 at university. I worked as an assistant wardrobe member at Nottingham Playhouse assisting on a few shows including Twelfth Night and Little Shop of Horrors. I was involved in making, fittings, tech rehearsals, alterations and backstage work.

Alana did an amazing job at designing, managing and making the costumes for our production of Goldilocks and the Three Bears at the Frazer Theatre. I was so impressed with her creativity and adaptability. She worked well to a budget and managed a team of makers with positivity, often going above and beyond to make sure deadlines were met. I would recommend her for her artistry, imagination, skill and teamwork. I was so pleased with the colour, fun and flare evident in the production’s costumes and would happily work with her again.

Dan Ingram-Brown, Director, Frazer Theatre, January 2024

Education

2020-2023

BA(Hons) Design for Stage and Screen -Costume Design and Construction

2:1

Nottingham Trent University

2019-2020

Foundation Diploma in Art and Design

Textiles, Fashion and Costume (Pathway)

Merit

Leeds Art University

2017-2019

A-Level

Art - Art and Design : C

Textiles - Art and Design : C

Drama and Theatre Studies : C

York College

2015-2017

GCSE

Expressive Arts : C

Fine Art - Art and Design : A

Textiles - Design and Technology : A*

Performing Arts : Distinction

English Language and Literature : 6

Mathematics : 5

Core Science : C

King James Secondary School

Nottingham Playhouse Prize for Pantomime

Winner - June 2023

Alana Simms