Notes on ‘Shakespeare Costume and Fashion’ from the talk given by Prof. Escolme at our Looking for William event on June 15, 2024.
- How costumes might have looked in the 1600s, how much they cost and the restrictions of the sumptuary laws
An illustration by Peacham c. 1595 for Titus Andronicus shows the figures are not in Roman dress – only Titus has a sort of toga. It is unlikely that costumes of 1600 were historically accurate. They were contemporary and the cost factor would have influenced what could be acquired. Henslowe’s 1598 records detail a costume costing £3.10s (nearly £500) which in comparison to the cost of a play, £2 or £3, shows how expensive costumes could be. Patrons paid for costumes, but there was also a good second-hand market that came from the wardrobes of deceased members of the aristocracy who had left their garments to their servants. The sumptuary laws regulated dress codes according to class and therefore the servants who had inherited the refinery of their masters were not entitled to wear them and therefore sold them.
2. A move towards Realism.
Shakespeare’s plays performed in the Victorian era followed the Realist ideals. The famous Victorian actor Charles Kean played Richard II in 1857 in what he saw as medieval costume. Plays in the 1800s went for historical accuracy, not unlike Kenneth Branagh’s 1989 movie of Henry V.
3. Examples of two plays.
Much Ado About Nothing – the wedding dressing scene illustrates the conflicting views on appropriate dress code for the nuptials. Hero favours a simple dress, she wishes to portray the ideal image of womanhood, whereas her gentlewoman suggests something more extravagant. Elizabethans recognised that their Queen wore sumptuous garments, but the Puritans, who were anti theatre, as well as ordinary people felt that dress should be plain and ordinary. The text mentions a rebato, a stiff collar with a laced edge that was not attached to the dress, flatter than a ruff, and a tire which was a headdress with hair (not the wearer’s) attached to it. This raises the question of when the play is set in different periods requiring different costume styles, does the text have to change?
Hamlet – despite his mother’s pleas, Hamlet choses to wear black. In the Elizabethan era it was a popular colour, especially black cloaks, and it is a colour that has been favoured in productions over the centuries. In the Victorian era, of course, there were strict rules on mourning clothes, their colour and period for which they should be worn. In contrast, Ophelia traditionally wears white. Hamlet is set in medieval Denmark, yet Elizabethan clothing was worn in contemporary productions. Over the years costume styles have varied significantly, creating new effects and meaning.
4. How costumes make meaning.
Conclusion – Shakespeare’s historical plays were a way of commenting on contemporary society’s issues and a way of overcoming the restrictions on what the dialogues in his play scripts could say. With costumes that were not totally true to the period of the plays, but were of a more contemporary style, they were a powerful way of adding meaning to the production.
Our thanks to Fay Shaefer for the above notes.