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COUSTOM DESIGN

THE KING AND I

"The King and I" is a musical by Rodgers and Hammerstein, and its story dates back to 1860. The story describes the experiences of Anna Leonance a British teacher sent to Siam to teach the King's children the English language. There are many cultural differences between Siam and England that make it difficult for Anna to adapt to the palace.

In this course we were asked to choose a play, and from this we choose a character for which we will design costumes in 3 scenes of our choice' Later we will have to choose a new concept for the play, which will affect all the costume design in the play but will not hurt the text and remain true to the original character without any changes.

The character I chose to design for is anna.The first scene I chose is the scene where Anna arrives from England on the ship, calming herself and her son as she sings a song due to an argument created with the King's messenger. At this time Anna is dressed in her travel clothes.

The second scene I chose is a scene in Anna's room, Anna in a harsh monologue describing the content of the argument and she is upset. Anna gradually removes her upper garments until the monologue is trampled by a knock on the door. The final scene is the prom scene, where the king and Anna dance together. Throughout the musical, the difference between Siam and Anna's culture is emphasized, and her own relationship with the king is on the ups and downs and even accompanied by romantic and intimate situations.

In the new concept, I decided to express the transition Anna is going through from her arrival in Siem Reap to the end of the play as the new culture finds its way into her own heart and culture. By incorporating Siamese elements and shades, I chose to show Anna's clothing throughout the scenes of the cultural and emotional progress between her and the king.

In the first scene of the new concept Anna wears an ordinary daywear in England but her collar is embroidered with gold elements as a signal of respect for the culture she came to. In the second scene, Anna is mixed with her feelings and underwear full of elements of Siamese culture. The third scene contains the finest Siamese elements in fabrics, embroidery, saturated hues, and a great deal of golden elements.

The costume design for this play relies on historical clothing and learning of upper and lower layers of women's clothing at this time along with consideration of the right materials and exact silhouette.

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original

new concept

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Design process

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