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The purpose of a costume manager is to oversee all aspects and areas of the entire process of managing costume as well as backstage, they ensure that all aspects are done within time at a high quality and lead others in their team in the right direction to the best of their abilities, as a team member they ensure that everyone else around them know exactly what they're doing and everyone has a role.

The manager ensures that everything goes smoothly and can solve any issues and challenges along the way whilst working in a team, they ensure that people stick to schedules that they put together, stick to budget and ensures that the process of creating a costume from design to construction to wardrobe and then on stage goes to plan.

They're in charge of finding out all the fine details like: cast size and cast lists, budget, themes and other parts of the production that might affect the costumes like dancing or stunts then communicating to other team members down the chain so this could be other heads of the department like wardrobe managers or designers and costume assistants.

Costume managers also oversee the backstage duties and assign roles there too, they ensure that the costumes are labelled and oraganised properly on the rail managers enforce backstage rules for example making sure no spillable drinks are in the actors room and changing areas are assessed and safe for the actors to use.

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Costume managers oversee lots of responsibilities and duties before, during and after productions every part of the process is important and effects the next so it's important that Costume managers ensure that all their duties and responsibilities are met.

Before a production the Costume manager has many duties that need to be carried out, a Costume manager will attend multiple meetings with directors and other departments, these meetings are important as you get to talk one to one with the director and everyone else there, this helps you get an understanding of the creative themes the director wants as well as asking your own important questions. At these meetings you have the opportunity to discuss costume ideas and present design work with visuals like fabrics and accessories, in these meetings you can get important details like budget, cast lists and size, specific costumes the director is requesting as well as asking your own questions on character costumes and the ideas that the team are thinking about this helps a costume manager create their own research and eventually designs, the costume manager will take their notes (if they were the only one present sometimes there's a second manager or assistant) and present these to others in the costume team and its their responsibility that the notes are communicated properly and communication stays good within the team.

The costume manager will overlook all the paperwork like budgeting and risk assessments or they might give this role to someone else and check it afterwards, it's very important that these specific things are met and checked, risk assessments are an absolute must especially if the costume involves anything with a stunt or theatrics the manager will usually asses daily risks and risks relevant to the production and create a detail risk assessment that includes the dangers and prevention of the risk its their job to ensure that they get this done or someone else with the role does it. The manager also ensures that other things like budgeting and sometimes marketing. Budget is important and the manager will be incharge of making sure that the construction and sourcing stays within budget along with making sure that some of the budget is left aside in case of an accident or misplacement of costumes/accessories. This usually means they are the ones to yes or no to any buying of any material or item and keeping a document and receipts of all purchases

The manager oversees the most important part of costume; design, construction and sourcing, the costume manager might assign these roles to other people as well as doing these roles themselves, they're in charge of looking at overall designs and showing them to directors and trying to match the designs as best they can when it comes to the construction of the garment. The manager will oversee teams of people who are constructing the garments and sourcing they might separate these teams for a faster job, they'll ensure that the list of materials they need to source or hire is communicated clearly and stays within budget as well as using as many sources as possible: charity shops, online and at home materials like old shirts for the best and cheapest options.

Managers will also ensure that within the construction process that all jobs are met and aren't skipped like: measuring, fabric, pattern making, technical designs, mock ups and the actual process of construction its important that the manager makes sure that these jobs are done because it could cause problems down the line that affect or look unprofessional in the production for example not checking that the size of the garments fit and are tailored properly until the day when they realise it doesn't fit.

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A costume managers job doesn't stop after the garments have been sourced, hired or constructed they're also in charge in making sure that during the production it goes smoothly, there's a lot of jobs that need to be done or assigned to others to do.

The costume manager will assigned the job to the wardrobe manager to look after the actors room and changing rooms or they might do this themselves, this means making sure tags are ordered and wrote down properly on hangers and that all the costumes are organised and neatly put up with their correct label on the hanging rail, they'll need to make sure that rules including signs are posted up in the actors room to make sure that backstage stays orderly and tidy, these rules and signs might be things like: no drinks without lids, changing room signs when they are occupied and backstage rules like staying quiet and keeping the rail and floor tidy. The manager or person assigned needs to make sure the actors room is set up with places to put personal belongings like boxes, labels on chairs and changing rooms are safe and hidden for the actors to use.

The manager will ensure that there is backup pieces of costumes like spare shirts and trousers as well as emergency sewing kits, these kits should include; needle and thread (black and white), a pair of scissors or snips, plasters, hair pins, clear nail varnish and spare buttons anything extra will be communicated to have in the emergency kits. The manager will also assign places where assistants need to be for quick changes or quick repair and emergencies, a first aid kit and someone who is first aid trained should always be present in case of injuries as well as fire safety equipment which should have all been checked in the health and safety report.

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After the production has finished its the managers job to make sure that everything has been tidied and cleaned up. The manager will first make sure that all costumes have been placed back on the rail and returned to its original place if any costumes are missing whether the department own it, its been sourced or owned by someone outside the department like an actor then its the managers job to locate the missing costume or item and if it can't be found work out a solution to compensate for the missing property this could be paying back what has been lost or an apology, there should always be a document that states every costume that's being used, who it's being used by and where the costume is located and should be brought back too, this organisation is important in case something does go missing you can locate who had it and where it last was.

The manager is also in charge of cleaning all of the costumes after the show because they'll be really unclean and should not be returned to anyone's possession as its a health risk and unprofessional. The manager should check if costumes are allowed to be washed because some fabrics and costumes are to delicate for the washing machine and might need professional dry cleaning also if the costume has been owned by someone outside the department that might have allergies that should be noted and checked too, the manager then needs to clean all the costumes and return them to their respective places; original owners, company they have been hired from and the costume store room. When returned to the store room depending on the regulations they should be placed back neatly and organised.

Whilst the costumes are being cleaned and returned the actors room should also be receiving the same treatment, signs and labels should be taken down, hanging rails should be taken back to where they belong, boxes where personal belongings were kept should be checked that nothing has been left behind and taken back to where they came from, changing rooms should be checked and cleaned (if portable then they should be taken down and placed back where they were before) and surfaces should be disinfected and cleaned especially due to covid. There might be rubbish that needs to be thrown away and little bits of costumes that fell under radar might also need to be cleaned and returned.

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Managers must have a range of skills to help them throughout the production, these skills have been developed over time whilst in the production team, without these skills it's going to be very hard for the manager to be able to keep control over highly stressful situations and it would affect the production.

The first important skill to have is being able to keep cool under stressful situations, a production is going to open up a big door of situations that are going to test a manager's ability to stay calm and collected, these situations can come out of nowhere and aren't always going to be similar so being able to stay calm is going to really help the manager come up with a solution to solve problems an example of a problem could be that all the costumes are ready and the actors are putting them on and suddenly one of the costumes tear a big hole, in this situation the manager needs to evaluate the situation as quickly as possible and come up with a possible solution, is there a back up costume? can the hole be mended? can it be covered? It's not just problems that can cause stress the basic things like getting quick changes on time or meeting costume deadlines are incredibly stressful because it feels like a lot of weight on your shoulders. Its imperative that the manager is able to handle these situations and the overall stress of the production because they're a pillar in the production and other people rely on them.

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This leads me onto the next important skill which is problem solving, a manager will have throughout the production many problems that come up whether it be, budget, construction, design, backstage, wardrobe or other elements a problem is sure to rise up and many people will look up to the manager to solve those issues or at least give them advice and point in the right direction. Having the skill to produce solutions to problems is critical and being able to act quick is crucial to the production, the flow of the construction process can't be stopped as there is deadlines and limited time, being able to be put on the spot and evaluate the situation and come up with a quick solution is really beneficial to keeping the flow and stress down for everyone.

These problems won't just stop at the start of the production but during and after, costumes are liable to go missing, drinks can spill, costumes can break, actors can be late, quick changes can go wrong and more. During the production it's imperative that if a problem comes up then a solution can quickly be given, sometimes these solutions aren't what we want but sometimes there isn't a choice and we have to keep going. Problems after a production are less stressful because the production is over but it's still important to get these problems fixed as soon as, sometimes property goes missing or rented costumes get damaged and being able to deal with these problems is also important.

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Organisation is a key skill to have for the manager because without organisation things can get lost or go missing, communication can go down, important details can go under radar and jobs might not get done. Organisation helps the Costume manager keep within deadlines and within budget, having a thought out plan of everything really helps with stress and ensuring that everything goes smoothly.

The type of plans a manager would do to keep everything organised is budgeting plans; how much can the production spend? how much can we put aside for an emergency? where is the money coming from? Managers will make schedules on a document that will show when due dates for when jobs need to be done by and the jobs that need to be done these jobs are everything in the costume process; measurring, designs, technicals, construction and other jobs. Getting cast size and list is important too and researching the production and costume ideas with a list of possible places to hire and source costumes is another part of being organised and planning that the manager will have to do.

The manager will also need to organised teams or select people for certain jobs or working on certain characters, having an organised routine and jobs that the team can do makes everything really simple and less stressful, the manager will also make sure that everyone is happy in there places and will move people around unless they've been given a character. These jobs can be things like quick changes, designing, construction or sourcing its important that everyone knows what they're doing to keep motivation within the team and so that no one is lost on what to do and not doing anything at all it's also good to keep tabs on what's being done and who is doing it.

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Communication is important for a manager to have as a skill because everything they do needs to be done with great communication, the manager will be communicating with almost all members of the department and its imperative that this communication is done correctly, they'll be communicating with directors, members within their own team, other departments like actors for measurements and taking notes of tattoos and allergies.

If communication breaks down on any part of the process it can cause problems, these problems may delay the production or cause jobs to not be done and things to go under the radar.

Passing down the communication to everyone in the team is important it helps everyone keep everyone informed and feeling motivated, the manager will communicate with the director taking notes, asking questions and getting information that they then need to pass down to their own team and make sure that everyone understands what they're doing, its very important to always double check your information and if everyone understands, it's easy for other to get confused or agree due to pressure of the room.

Communication during the production has to be immaculate, everyone should always know what they're doing, they should always know times of actors coming and going off stage and what to do if anything wrong happens, if this communication falls off it could greatly affect the production, everyone should be communicated to properly and told if they aren't sure to make sure to double check with the manager, it's the managers job to double check with everyone and all the jobs that need to be done.

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The manager needs to have a wide range of skills in the costume process, these skills are needed to help aid other people and also do jobs themselves because managers still also have to work on costumes. Having a wide range of skills in the construction process is important because knowing lots of methods means the manager can test all side of the process to really get the best out come possible; for example testing different dyes and different ways to dye clothing, being able to test every process ensures that costumes can be the best quality.

The managers also need to have these skills so that they can help others in the team explore lots of ideas and to help them if they're aren't as confident, it also means if someone has a problem during the process of a general question the manager can help them, knowing lots of skills in the costume process also means you can have a smoother process when creating or sourcing costumes, knowing what to do makes everything a lot less stressful and smoother.

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Whilst researching responsibilities and skills of a costume manager I came across many different organisations that showed what they set out for their own manager and what they wanted and expected their own costume managers to be able to do and succeed at.

Being able to look at different companies helped me understand my own job role, I managed to explore lots of  different aspects that I didn't consider or have a clearer idea of vague ideas i already knew. `

The first document that I looked at was from Okiahoma city ballet, this was a really straight forward PDF that confirmed duties and skills I already knew about like needing to clean costumes after use and monitor the costume process but also showed me things I didn't consider before like maintaining an inventory of rented costumes and overseeing special products like dying and fabric printing, I didn't consider having to watch over these things because I haven't yet used rented costumes or fabric printing but if I was in a managing roll outside of college these are things im likely going to do.

https://www.okcballet.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Costume-Manager.pdf

Young Vic theatre is another document that I looked at to refresh my perspectives of the sort of skills that are expected of me to have, it's a small introduction document but has many bullet pointed ideas of the skills that they look for in a costume manager which gives me an idea of what i should be looking for myself to show and do in my own production, being able to see what professionals are expected to do gives me a very good idea and understanding of the quality of managing that i have to show in my own production.

https://www.youngvic.org/sites/default/files/attachments/Wardrobe%20Manager%20for%20Inheritance%20-%20JD%20Jan%202018.pdf

Court theatre was a more detailed document that I looked at for my costume manager roll, it lists a lot more responsibilities and specific duties that I as a costume manager need to do. Not only this but it shows me what authorities I have over my team, it refreshed my understanding on who is above me and who i answer too and also resources that i have available to me as the costume manager like costume construction staff and support within the organisation if I was a manager for a different company. I had no idea about much of this so being able to find this out was very beneficial and gives me ideas of what i could bring to the production and what to expect from others and other companies.

https://courttheatre.org.nz/assets/Uploads/Costume-Manager-JOB-DESCRIPTION.pdf

Okiahoma description was really well put together and gave me a good refresher of what my duties and skills are as a costume manager but it lacked a lot of detail, for example young vic theatre went into great detail about responsibilities but that's all it really showed me a lot of information that was new to me came from the Court theatre which gave me a great understanding of things I never even considered like the authorities that I have and who's above me in terms of leadership both of the other documents didn't state these sort of things.

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As a costume manager in LCC backstage my role requires me to have good understanding of my duties, skills and responsibilities and work well within a team with budget and time constraints, managing my time for production and course work whilst also ensuring that my duties as a manager are being met. As a costume manager I will share this role with another student as we work as a team to manage a production together.

As a costume manager in LCC backstage i'm firstly required to attend weekly meetings with the directors, if i'm not able attend I have to make sure I have someone else that can stand in for me, this will require me to communicate questions I need answers too and any material that I need the director to see and know, if i'm there myself I will ask these questions myself and gain as much information as possible, i'll need to ask about the theme the director wants for the production and overall costumes for characters, cast size and list, budget and any other ideas that I need to present also materials like fabrics and designs. My other costume manager will also need to this as well for anything that they need to know, this means I need to make sure that I leave space for them to communicate.

I'll need to create organised documents for all my research, risk assessments, costings and sourcing, this is my job as a costume manager to do as i'm in charge of the paper work and ensuring we have all the correct planning, research and schedules in place, with organised schedules and plans for materials/costs i can keep track of all the jobs and progress we're making.

Whilst attending meetings I need to continue with work on costumes, taking the information i'm gathering from my meetings and communicating them to my team and using the information to source and construct the costumes. I'll need to do design ideas or assign others in my team to certain characters to design for.

I'll need to make a document and research for costumes that i'm looking to source or hire this is so I can make a cost sheet as well as store websites, phone numbers and store locations of places I can hire and source from, this makes it easier for me to buy costumes when i get a budget. As well as sourcing and hiring costumes we will also construct costumes too, constructing a costume takes a lot of preparation, the costume manager will assign a costume member to start creating the garment, I will check the design and check that it has been approved by the director once I get the given the go ahead I can allow myself and others to start the construction process, I will make sure that all jobs within the process are met like: technical flats, fabric buying, testing materials, mock and the final garment.

As a manager I need to take charge of the dressing room or assign someone to do it with me, this includes adding signs and rules, getting the changing rooms safe and ready to use, giving actors designated chairs and boxes to place personal belongings and having an organised hanging rail, it's my job that these are all set out properly in an organised fashion so when the actors come in they know exactly where to go and where everything is, this should hopefully minimise lost items and lost property to which gives me less work to do in the get out.

During the get out it's my job to make sure any costumes that I hire or borrow is cleaned and returned to the company they came from or person it was borrowed from, i'm in charge of making sure that all property is returned to individuals, in previous productions actors left a lot of belongings behind and lost property like phones during the production. I also need to make sure that I clean the costume room this means taking down signs, returning costumes to our store room, moving the clothes rail back to the costume room and putting the dressing areas back as well as general cleaning of surfaces and floor.