by: Felicia Naoum
MACEDONIA, Ohio – Nordonia High School – Photos by Sam Milani
When the only glimmer of light shining is on the 
stage and you’re sitting in a dark audience filled with anticipation for what is about to meet your eyes, do you ever wonder beyond the acting, the set and all of the magic? Do you ever wonder how salient it is to obtain the best costume for the right performance?
One can surely appreciate a performance that is well thought out and planned, but just as much as the acting and set are meant to grab the audience’s attention, so are the pieces. “Customs make up the biggest part of the budget,” according to Chris Simmons, Director of the drama club at Nordonia High School.
Every little detail matters and Nordonia High School takes this concept very seriously as everything down to the material worn is carefully planned and carefully matched to the era portrayed. Items are gathered from contacts at various high schools as well as multiple trips to used clothing stores such as Goodwill.
An era can change so much when it comes to what to wear. Here are a select few of the meaningful pieces collected by Nordonia High School’s drama department over the years:
- Hot pink psychedelic print with gold trim worn is Once Upon a Mattress (era: 1960’s) by Melissa Mays who played Princess Winifred, but typically used in the Medieval era; however it is a versatile print that can be used in both eras
- Salmon poly with gold trim dress with fur jacket – worn by Motormouth Mabel in the 2012 performance of Hairspray (era: 1960)
- Orange flower with orange trim prairie style dress worn in 1990’s performance of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (era: late 1800’s early 1900’s)
- White wedding dress worn by Adelaide in the 2004 performance of Guys and Dolls (era: 1950’s)
- Hot pink and black peplum cocktail dress with pearls on front worn in performance of The Wedding Singer (era: 1980’s)
- (right) Emerald Green with bow and square diamond pin dress worn in 2003 performance of Footloose (era: 1980’s) – (left) light pink chiffon lace with a bow and high collar used for Civil War and Edwardian era
- Royal blue velour over aqua trim poly with blue zip down front used for Medieval era
