Color Tells the Story in Joffrey Ballet’s Alice

Vicki Crain, Chicago Magazine

Ellie Cotey, the company’s costume manager, walks us through the careful care of the production’s whimsical wears.

“We’re all mad here,” the Cheshire Cat famously says in Lewis Carroll’s 1865 classic children’s tale Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. But the Joffrey Ballet’s costume manager, Ellie Cotey, must keep her wits about her as she ensures the costumes and quick changes are seamless for the upcoming 14 performances of the three-act ballet based on the book. Cotey, now in her 11th season with the Joffrey, is set to take on one of her biggest productions yet as Alice comes to the Lyric Opera House June 5-22.

This version of the ballet, by Tony Award-winning choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and originally made in 2011 for the Royal Ballet of London, has a Red Queen, a White Rabbit, a purple-clad Alice, a psychedelic Mad Hatter, and menagerie of animals including a caterpillar, hedgehogs, and various rowdy rodents. 

What makes the costumes for this production stand out — aside from the sheer number of them — are the intricate details and vibrance: The flamingoes’ arms, faces, and upper bodies painted a flamboyant pink; tights and shoes hand-painted with detailed animal prints; fabric flowers with the edges burned to appear more organic; and a “magic” bunny tail that pops out of the White Rabbit’s pants using hidden magnets. 

Chicago stopped by the studios for a sneak peek into what goes on behind the seams.

You joined Joffrey as a stitcher in 2014. What stands out from that first season?

I remember we had to be very careful altering the costumes because they were rented, and we had to send them back in the same condition. It was the first time I had done that, and it was valuable to learn. We are currently going through that same process with Alice since we rented the costumes from the Royal Danish Ballet. 

Wardrobe encompasses everything from hats, shoes, makeup, wigs, etc. How do you keep track of it all? 

There are so many costumes. It’s a much bigger production than we’re used to. It’s bigger than our Nutcracker (also choreographed by Wheeldon). This ballet is usually done by a larger company. Our dancers are learning so many roles and we have a lot of extra dancers from the Grainger Academy, children, and a few seasonal dancers. On any given night, we might have more quick changes than originally planned for because someone might start as a maid and then they’re a flower and then a card. The possibility of that is huge, so it adds a little intricacy. 

We have all the costumes you see on stage, plus at least 50% more because there are duplicates and extras. There are several casts of the character Alice, and she wears four different costumes during the show, so we have multiple sets of that. Then there are all the accessories. A lot of the characters have hats, headpieces, jewelry, masks, veils, etc. 

Read the full article on Chicago Magazine.