Robert Louis Stephenson’s gripping psychological drama explored the stark contrast between the genteel, refined Victorian elite and the grim, hard-scrabble working classes on whom they depended for their rarified lifestyles.
The Broadway musical based on his story brings those contrasts to stark life in glorious set-pieces – street scenes, a high-society wedding – and in the quick-change transformation of the cerebral and restrained Dr. Jekyll into the cunning brute, Mr Hyde.
Of course, the transformation between the two facets of the same man depends on the skill of the actor, but the costumes we supply give the leading man everything he needs to portray this dramatically-demanding change. Designed for quick change from High Society to the Underworld, the Jekyll/Hyde costumes are made to represent the terrifying dichotomy of the character.
The feminine interests of literature’s most famous split personality contrast both Jekyll/Hyde and the brutal gulf between the two sides of Victorian society. Lisa Carew epitomises the era’s ideal of feminine grace and elegance, culminating in her wedding scene; her costumes are everything that the ladies of that time did best in styling. Lucy Harris, the prostitute character, is dressed to show the grinding hardship of a woman playing a bad hand in the rigged game that was the society of her lifetime.
The supporting cast is also well-served on both sides of this split – newsboys, streetwalkers, costermongers, pimps and publicans and the working classes in general for the underside of Victorian life, and a general, a bishop, and elegant lords, knights and ladies for the elite. The chorus for all the big numbers of this musical will definitely be dressed for the occasion!