Le Grand Chapiteau: Amaluna

Amaluna costume designer Mérédith Caron has brought a company of fabulous and eclectic characters to life through the magic of her creations. She imagined the world of the show – the mysterious island of Amaluna – as existing somewhere in the Mediterranean as a true meeting place between East and West, a distant land where ancient and modern times overlap and blend harmoniously, and several different eras and cultures have seemingly melded into the same location. Her complex multidimensional costumes evoke a world of day and night that is unquestionably contemporary, yet overlaid with the spirit of the Elizabethan period and containing subtle references to the Orient and Scandinavia. “It’s the encounter of humanity, the glorification of the beauty of the human being,” she explains.

The Amaluna costumes are a symbiosis between theatre and acrobatics. For Mérédith, the character and the costume are inseparable. “One calls out to the other. It is a communion, a symbiotic relationship,” she says. “But above all, it is the artist that I dress.” To dress the artists, Mérédith has created “progressive” costumes with multiple configurations. Some of them put on a parade uniform for the more theatrical moments in the show, and performance costumes when they perform their act. Many of the garments are equipped with pads and other removable parts – the wearers might, for example, remove the sleeves and keep their doublets on, or remove the doublets altogether and perform in their shirts.

Amaluna recreates a fabulous female mythology on stage. Inspired by Asia Minor, the corseted costumes of the Amazon warriors are augmented with ponytails and high-heeled black and red leather boots in a look that is more fantasy than historical reality. The world of Amaluna is also populated by a layer of unruly half-human, half-animal characters, freely inspired by the world of Shakespeare’s Tempest. Lizards, peacocks and fairies rub shoulders with each other.

Some of the items are quite voluminous, but even though they are also light, they are never allowed to impede the free movement of the artists. The costumes with pink accents worn by the girls for the Icarian Games act feature removable tutus so as not to hinder their movements. The Renaissance-style sleeves are open at the armpits to ensure their arms will have a full range of motion. For the Valkyries’ costumes in the Aerial Straps act, Mérédith Caron was inspired by the oceans, above and below the surface. Shades of blue and green evoking Scandinavia mix with shades of sky and sea to compose a soothing palette of sophistication.

The choice of materials is as important to Mérédith Caron as the lines of the garments. She has given denim doublets worn by the Boys who land on the island of Amaluna a distinctly Renaissance look: The sleeves are slashed to reveal the lining, and the garments are embellished with an 18th century velvet flocking to create the impression of a contemporary jean jacket. Queen Prospera’s daughter Miranda, who is about to move into adulthood in this remote environment, wears linen, cambric and distressed velvet – a selection that is highly reminiscent of the Italian Renaissance. Her costume expresses her enthusiasm and thirst for discovery.

The peacock costumes, for example, are made up of 14 layers of heatpleated materials trimmed in leather and stretch metallic fabric. The tails open out to a “fan” of eight feet with hydraulic pistons that compensate for their weight. Made in the same proportion to the performers’ bodies as the bird’s fans have to theirs, the tails are attached to the artists with belts that hide the mechanisms under embroidered feathers. The skeleton and leaves of the fans are made of the same Fiberglass material used in the manufacture of fishing rods, and screen-printed metallic paper is glued to the leaves to recreate the iridescent look of peacock plumage.

The white dress worn by the artist performing the Peacock Dance comprises a bustier and a skirt. The bustier is made of stretch nylon tulle covered with white beaded lace and Swarovski crystals. The skirt is made of 65 yards of white non-stretch nylon tulle covered with silver lace and Swarovski crystals. The dress has a total of 6,500 Swarovski crystals and 325 silver lace additions. The tail features 12 two-meter pleated polyester voile panels with sunray pleats (bias-cut knife pleats, narrower at the top than at the bottom, producing a flared effect), printed with white peacock feather designs.