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Magazine
May 20163
Amanda Aldridge is a triple threat
Amanda Aldridge, Barter Theatre
resident choreographer and costume
designer, says she’s always loved dance.
“My mother saw her first ballet, ‘Swan
Lake,’ when she was six-months pregnant
with me, and she loved it. We have always
said that is why I love dance so much. I
started dance classes at age 3. My family
moved every year or so, and ballet became
my constant. It was the way I made friends
each time we moved, since I found people to
share something I loved,” she says.
Her young life was all about dance. She
attended Washington School of Ballet in the
ninth grade and toured the U.S. with the
Memphis Civic Ballet and Princeton Ballet
companies in high school. She attended
Sarah Lawrence College and then moved to
New York City to make her break in the world
of theater. She landed her first professional
job at Surflight Theatre, where she did 10
musicals in 10 weeks.
“I was fortunate to play many of the
classic dance roles: Jeannie in ‘Brigadoon,’
Eliza in ‘King and I,’ a Kit Kat girl
in ‘Cabaret,’ and my first comic role as Gloria
in ‘Mame,’” she said.
Her next job had far-reaching
consequences; a summer stock romance
turned into a lifelong partnership on and offstage, when she met Rick Rose at Canterbury
Summer Theatre.
Rose was instrumental in encouraging
Aldridge to design her first show, “Picnic.”
While at Canterbury, she worked in the
costume shop (in addition to dancing)
because she could sew. “I was somewhat
intimidated at the thought of designing an
entire show, but I took the leap and have
been hooked ever since.”
After Canterbury, Rose and Aldridge
moved to New York City, where Aldridge
worked as a seamstress at Juilliard. Anytime
a designer asked for help with a project,
she said “yes,” and learned from some of
the industry’s best designers. Her career
then took her to the American Stage Festival
and Merrimack Repertory Theatre, where
she was resident costume designer and
choreographer.
Aldridge and Rose came to Abingdon,
Virginia, and Barter Theatre in 1992, where
she is the resident choreographer/costume
designer. In her 23rd season, she has
choreographed or designed costumes for
more than 160 Barter productions.
“Each show consumes your thoughts
and energy and becomes your child,” she
says. “There are some that make you think
and look at the world differently, and some
that open up a new part of your brain.
Being an artist in residence, for me, is most
rewarding. Theater is a collaborative art
form, and working with people you know
and trust allows you to take risks. Barter
does such a variety of work; it demands that
you take on projects outside your comfort
zone. This is extremely challenging and
frightening and rewarding.”
By blending her knowledge of
choreography with her costume design skills,
she gains a distinct advantage by being able
to think about how an actor has to move
while performing. “In my mind, when I see
one, I see the other. They just really kind of
work from the same part of my brain.”
These dual talents become especially
useful in productions such as “The Who’s
Tommy,” where five dancers portray the
chaos of Tommy’s mind, or in “Xanadu,” when
a dancer transforms from the ‘40s to the ‘80s
by simply spinning out of a skirt.
world. It’s her life’s work, and she puts her
whole being into her art.” She also acts as a
mentor to her colleagues and young people.
and history, as we traveled and lived all over
the world. I think it kept my eyes open to
new experiences and people.”
“The arts are invaluable in young
people’s lives,” Aldridge says. “The arts
open your mind and heart. They give you
confidence and put you in a world where
people enjoy the differences in people. I
have watched the children who do our
workshops and who are cast in our shows.
They gain an amazing sense of self-worth
and become comfortable in themselves and
their interactions with others. The experience
helps them in anything they pursue.
Aldridge says she’s totally surprised to
receive the AAME Arts Achievement Award.
“Theater is my passion, and I do it because I
love the challenge and the constant
exploration and learning. As we work on a
show, we talk a lot about the audience and
fulfilling expectations. But I am shy about
the recognition. I prefer being behind the
scenes.”
She may prefer to be behind the scenes,
but her work is front and center stage.
“For me, my parents exposed us to lots
of theater and museums and architecture
“Designing and choreographing are
always fascinating. Each show takes you on
a journey – researching and exploring and
challenging yourself to figure out how to tell
the story and develop the characters. For me,
the costumes and the choreography go hand
in hand,” she says.
Her greatest successes come when
she pushes the boundaries of the roles of
both design and choreography. This can be
seen in her avant garde work in “Cabaret,”
“Xanadu,” “The Wizard of Oz” (which had
1,648 costume pieces) and “Joseph and
the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” which
featured cirque-clown inspired costumes
with other pieces integrated throughout the
performance.
For Aldridge, costumes set an instant
tone for mood, season, personality, social
status, time period, position, class and rank,
among other factors. Sometimes costumes
take on a life of their own and become iconic,
such as Dorothy’s ruby slippers, Scarlett
O’Hara’s green velvet drapery gown and the
Phantom’s mask, among others.
“When we envision these costumes, the
feelings we experienced when seeing these
performances are clearly remembered and
relived. Therefore, it is vitally important that
these ‘characters’ be brought to life with skill
and passion,” she says.
Last season, she became a triple
threat: she designed costumes, oversaw
choreography and directed “The Marvelous
Wonderettes.” This season, she has designed
a mermaid costume, clothes for a 10-foot
giant and many other fanciful costumes for
“Big Fish.”
Ashley Campos, who has worked with
Aldridge on the stage and in the costume
shop, says Aldridge has a “set of skills that
make her unique in the theatrical production
Amanda Aldridge works in the costume shop.