March 2020
5
THE MAKING OF THE LION KING, JR. COSTUMES A Conversation with Diana Tunis By Linda Gross; Photos by Diana Tunis and Linda Gross
The production of The Lion King Jr. by the Summer Youth Musical Theatre Program just wrapped up as we went to press. It was one of the more ambitious plays SYMTP has tackled over its nearly two decades of productions, and there have been some amazing shows! The Lion King Jr. showcased 56 kids on stage. Tunis is the creative genius behind SYMTP’s magnificent costumes, a role she’s been playing for XX years. According to Tunis, work for the costuming for The Lion King Jr. began in the summer of 2019, according to Tunis, and this SYMTP production enjoyed its largest budget to date thanks to the generosity of FMI and United Fund of Globe-Miami, as well as private donations by individuals and businesses. I talked to Diana Tunis by phone on some of the work that went into the costumes this year. If you wondered how she achieved the stunning results, here are a few insights into her method.
Diana Tunis (L), back stage with Debbie Jennex and a young actor, on opening night. Tunis is the creative genius behind the set design and costumes of the The Lion King Jr.
F “I sculpted the heads, and the mentors would help with layering the papier mache,” Tunis says. There were nine mentors – kids who have aged out of youth theater and helped with every stage of production, from coaching the actors, creating sets and running the lighting and sound.
F The lionesses’ costumes, which created such a regal effect as they flowed, were made from vintage saris, and the leggings were crushed velvet. F The beaded corsets worn by several in the play were all hand beaded. Tunis says she started beading these in July and beaded throughout July and August. Once that was done, she moved on to the masks. F The hardest costume, she says, were the giraffes. The kids had to learn to balance that much weight on their head, so it was especially important to have good posture, because a little tilt could mean disaster. F In earlier plays, the masks were offered for sale to the parents of the kids who wore them, and sometimes auctioned off, with all monies going back into the program. With the Lion King set, Tunis says HDMS is providing two rooms for storage, so the plan is to store all of it, including the costumes and set design, and come back in five years. F There is precedence for repeat performances. This summer, STYMPT will be doing The Wizard of Oz, which was first performed in 2000, again in 2010, and now, 2020. F The beautiful lion manes of Scar and the Lion King were made of actual weaves - those wonderful hair extensions that women use to add volume and color streaks. Tunis wove them into the manes to give them texture and depth. F All of the face painting designs began with Tunis, who created the look for each character and then taught the mentors how to replicate them. During the shows, it was the mentors who would apply the paint.
“It’s very important to me to make every child not only look special but feel special.”
F The Wildebeests comprised one big beast and one small beast mask. “We did ten big ones and eleven small ones,” Tunis said. F The skirts of the grassland were made of raffia table frames. F The hyenas, no two alike, were some of the most challenging because of the gums and teeth. Each set was individually designed F The feathering on Zazu, the Lion King’s majordomo, and the emus are actually fake fur, which can get expensive, but as Tunis proves, a little of this exotic fur can be used to great effect.
F Beyond the masks, every character was made memorable by Tunis’s magic: Pumbaa, Timon the elephant, the zebra and the rhino, the grassland girls, the fireflies and butterflies, the giraffes and the gazelle, the cheetahs and the zebra.
