Life is a Dream

Life Is A Dream by Calderón de la Barca
Vitalist Theatre, Chicago, IL
Directed By Elizabeth Carlin-Metz
Costume Design: Rachel Sypniewski
Photos by Francesca Mayer

As a technical artist for Life is a Dream, I constructed a jacket and skirt for the character of Rosaura, for the scenes where she is disguised as a lady-in-waiting at the court of Basilio I.  

I altered the flat pattern of a period Victorian woman’s basque jacket to fit the more modern stature of the actress, adding a revere under the bust to reveal an under-bust corset. I executed it in a copper iridescent taffeta, matching the gored skirt. I draped the apron-front detail out of a rusty burnout velvet.