In a time when men ruled the business world and only prostitutes and performers wore makeup, two female immigrants, born to poverty, raised themselves up to become iconoclastic powerhouses who defined 20th-century beauty and revolutionized how the world saw women. War Paint, written by Doug Wright with music by Scott Frankel and lyrics by Michael Korie, enters the world of cosmetic industry icons Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, played by Tony Award-winning theatrical titans Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole. Director Michael Greif assembled a star-studded creative team to help these industry giants shatter glass ceilings on stage first at Goodman Theatre in Chicago and now the Nederlander Theatre on Broadway: set designer David Korins, lighting designer Kenneth Posner, sound designer Brian Ronan, and costume designer Catherine Zuber. Read about the set design, lighting design, and sound design. Click through the slideshow for Zuber's costume sketches.
Nominated for a 2017 Tony Award for her design, Zuber’s challenge was to highlight both the differences and similarities between Rubinstein and Arden. “As we moved through the decades, we needed to show how these two women reacted to what was going on around them, both in their lives and in history,” the costume designer says. “Meanwhile, with the ensemble, we wanted to show how women transformed through the ages and what was considered stylish in those time periods.”
The costumes begin with the figure-hugging silhouettes and detailed hats that defined the 1930s. As the musical moves into the years of World War II in the early ‘40s, the skirts shorten due to lack of fabric. The early ‘50s see the post-war economic boom with a much more open acceptance of pampering oneself with beauty products. Style takes on a new cultural meaning in the mid-‘50s with the advent of the television and television advertising. “Then we finish up in the ‘60s, and there is quite a difference between our two leading ladies, who are quite elderly in comparison to the youth mod aesthetic that surrounds them now,” states Zuber. “They do seem that they are the end of a very elegant era.”
In the last scene, Ebersole dons a classically Arden-pink dress. “It’s a gown that an elegant, older woman would choose to wear, and Christine Ebersole looks beautiful in it,” she says. “At that point, she’s no longer wearing high heels because she had an accident and now uses a cane. We get the impression that she is not as tall as she had been, and it really helps to highlight how she has aged.” In contrast, LaPone as Rubinstein wears an eccentric ensemble, reflective of her spirited style. Zuber collaborated with jewelry designer Larry Vrba to tailor pieces for Rubinstein, who was a fan of jewelry and a lot of it. He presented Zuber with a piece that she thought was just so over the top that it wouldn’t work. “But he was absolutely right,” she admits. “It was perfect for the outfit. Patti really embraced it, and it helps bring so much dignity to the character.”
Overall, Zuber has quite a controlled palette. Rubinstein and Arden, adorned in the bright colors of their identities, pop against the ensemble that is attired mostly in gray. While the ensemble women look stylish, the gray signifies that they lack a certain joie de vivre until they exit Arden’s salon where they have been transformed and now wear pink clothing. The costumes for the chorus were made at the Goodman’s shop, while Euroco Costumes made all of LuPone and Ebersole’s outfits. Angels Costumes in London made most of the men’s suits. The rest of the costumes were sourced from a variety of vendors, from an independent maker in Connecticut to a shop in Germany.
Check out Zuber's costume sketches in the slideshow.