CHAPTER 19 Nonrealistic Makeup

Nonrealistic makeup comprises makeups not only for realistic and nonrealistic characters made up in one of various nonrealistic styles (FIGURE 19-1, 19-2B, 19-3, and 19-4), but also for nonrealistic, that is, fanciful or nonhuman characters—such as trolls, demons, and apes—made up in a realistic style (FIGURE 19-9).

FIGURE 19-1   Joe York as Frank N. Furter in The Rocky Horror Show at Zachary Scott Theater Center, Austin, Texas. An example of Theatricalism. (Photograph by Kirk R. Tuck.)

Nonrealistic Styles

The nonrealistic styles can range from theatrical realism or theatricalism (FIGURE 19-1, 19-2B, 19-3 19-4, for example) to nonrealism (FIGURE 19-4B, 19-5, and 19-6). When this nonrealism results from imposing a particular style on the design of the makeup, it is referred to as stylization.

STYLIZATION In designing a stylized makeup, you might begin by thinking in terms of using line, color, and form to heighten, exaggerate, simplify, clarify, satirize, symbolize, or perhaps amuse. Instead of consulting photographs for inspiration, you might consult paintings (FIGURE 19-5), drawings (FIGURE 19-8), prints, caricatures, masks (FIGURE 19-6), mosaics (FIGURE 19-7), toys, sculpture, or stained glass. Then, from your various ideas, you could select for your designs those that seem best suited to the character, the play, and the style of production.

For a stylized production of a French farce using black-and-white sets and costumes, for example, black-and-white makeups are an obvious, but potentially amusing, choice. For a Medieval morality play, you might design makeups to look like mosaics (FIGURE 19-7, for example) or stained glass. For the production of a play by Brecht, you could relate the makeups to the work of German artists of the period.

RELATING THE MAKEUP TO THE AUDIENCE In addition to relating to the style of the production, to the play, and to the character, a non-realistic makeup should also relate to the audience. Although audiences are usually quite willing to go along with innovations in style, there are certain areas of resistance the actor or the makeup artist should be aware of. Our ideas about some nonrealistic characters may be rather nonspecific and are thus open to fresh interpretation. But our ideas about other nonrealistic characters—such as those in Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, for example, are not so flexible. Sir John Tenniel created visual images of the characters in Alice (FIGURE 19-8, for example) that have become the definitive representations of those characters, and most audiences will tend to relate to them more readily on stage if they look rather like the ones with which they’re familiar.

FIGURE 19-2   Goblins for A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Makeup designed by Gary Christensen. Foam latex appliances airbrushed with Mehron and Kryolan liquid makeup.

FIGURE 19-3   The Red Queen from Through the Looking Glass. Natural eyebrows soaped out. Putty wax nose. An example of theatricalism. (Student makeup by Rebecca Colodner.)

FIGURE 19-4   Mephistopheles. Makeup in two different styles. A. Theatricalism. B. Stylization. (Makeup by Richard Corson.)

FIGURE 19-5   Makeup in the style of painter Karl Schmidt-Rottluff.

FIGURE 19-6   Makeup copied from an Oriental mask. (By student Elaine Herman.)

FIGURE 19-7   Thirteenth-century mosaic head. San Marco, Venice.

FIGURE 19-8   The duchess from Alice in Wonderland. With Alice, Cook, Baby, and Cheshire Cat. (Illustration by Sir John Tenniel.)

FIGURE 19-9   Werewolves designed and created by Matthew W. Mungle for CSI television show.

Nonrealistic and Nonhuman Characters

Makeups for nonrealistic and nonhuman characters may or may not be nonrealistic in style. Sometimes—as when an actor is playing a flower, for example—there is no choice since an actor simply cannot be made up realistically as a flower. Or as a cat. But the actor can be made up quite realistically as an ape or a werewolf (FIGURE 19-9).

The following suggestions may provide some ideas for dealing with a variety of nonrealistic characters. When referring to these suggestions, bear in mind that the descriptions are based largely on literature, art, and folklore; and though they may sometimes be stated dogmatically, they represent only a convenient point of departure. You may wish to vary them to suit your purpose.

ANGELS First determine the style of the production and the sort of angel required. If an ethereal angel is called for, you may wish to work with pale lavenders, blues, or whatever color seems appropriate. The features will probably be idealized human ones. But if you were doing The Green Pastures, the angels could achieve the comic effect required only with a realistic makeup.

ANIMALS When animals are played by humans (FIGURE 19-10), the style of the makeup may be either realistic or nonrealistic. Papier maché heads or masks (FIGURE 19-11) or latex constructions (FIGURE 19-9) can be used and sometimes should be, but if the style of the production permits, you may prefer merely to suggest animal features on a human face. That can be done in a completely nonrealistic or a modified realistic style with paint (FIGURE 19-12 and 19-13), or the paint can be combined with three-dimensional makeup. Crepe hair can also be used. Split lips can be drawn on (FIGURE 19-12), foreheads can be lowered, real or painted whiskers can be added, and paws can be made from gloves.

BIRDS Bird faces can be built up with three-dimensional additions or completely stylized with painted details. Sometimes the two may be combined. Birds with small beaks and large eyes (owls, for example) are, of course, easier to do with paint than are large-beaked birds. Brightly colored feathers can be attached with spirit gum. A complete mask would, of course, be more practical if the makeup had to be repeated. For smaller-beaked birds being done with makeup rather than masks, putty might be used instead of latex. Color can be as realistic or as fanciful as the birds themselves.

FIGURE 19-10   Bruno. Stylized makeup for children’s play. Improvised headdress.(Makeup by student Barbara Murray.)

CLOWNS Circus clowns wear stylized makeups of various types, each individually designed. Traditionally, they always design their own makeups and never copy the makeup of another clown. Shakespearean clowns are not really clowns at all in the contemporary meaning of the word and require a makeup—either realistic or theatrical-appropriate for the individual character.

The first step in designing a makeup for a circus clown is to decide what sort of clown you want—sad, happy, elegant, shy, brash, suspicious, ineffectual. Then design an exaggerated, stylized makeup to fit the conception. For a sad clown, for example, the eyebrows and the corners of the mouth will probably slant downward. A happy clown will, of course, have the corners of the mouth turned up. If your clown is to be an “Auguste” (see FIGURE 19-14), he will presumably have white paint accenting the eyes and mouth, pink cheeks, and a red nose. Sketching your design on paper first is likely to save time and result in a better makeup.

Clown white (see Appendix A) is usually used as a foundation. All exposed areas of flesh should be evenly colored. Then with pencils, brushes, and shading colors, you can duplicate your design. Bulbous clown noses can be molded with latex or purchased ready-made. Red-rubber balls are sometimes used. The hair should be treated in a style harmonious with the rest of the makeup. A skull cap or a wig is usually worn.

DEATH Death is usually pictured as having a skull for a head. The facial bones can be highlighted with white or ivory and shadowed with gray, charcoal-brown, or both. If the head is not going to be covered, a white skull cap or a plastic or a latex cap should be worn. The cap, which should cover the ears, can be painted the same color as the face and the edges blended carefully into the foundation. The eyebrows should always be blocked out (see Chapter 11).

FIGURE 19-11   Bird and animal masks. A. Sketches. B. Masks. (By Bill Smith.)

If the makeup is to be luminous, the white paint can be dusted with fluorescent or phosphorescent powder (see Appendix A) before any shading is done. Or fluorescent or phosphorescent paint can be brushed over the completed makeup in the appropriate places. With fluorescent makeup, an ultraviolet ray must be used on a dark stage to cause luminosity.

If Death is to appear part of the time disguised as a human, a normal though pale makeup can be used instead of white and the fluorescent paint or pigment applied only to the bones of the skull. Under normal stage lights the makeup will look normal, but under the ultraviolet ray the skull will appear. If the hands are to be visible, they should, of course, be made up in harmony with the makeup on the face. It is also possible to present Death in other ways—as a coldly beautiful woman, perhaps, as a black-hooded figure with no face at all, or as a clown.

FIGURE 19-12   Stylized rabbit. A. Blocking out eyebrows with Kryolan Eyebrow Plastic. B. Eyes being made up. C. Areas of color being painted on. D. Completed makeup with improvised headdress. Teeth are painted on over the lips. (Makeup by Barbara Murray.)

DEVILS AND DEMONS (FIGURE 19-16, 19-17, 19-18) The conventional devil (FIGURE 19-16) usually has a long face with sharp, pointed features, prominent cheekbones, long, hooked nose, well-defined lips, dark, upward-slanting eyebrows close together, and deep-set eyes. He may also have a mustache and a small, pointed beard. Conceptions of demons are usually less conventional and more imaginative.

DOLLS China or porcelain dolls can be made up with a creamy white, ivory, or pale pink foundation. The rouge, usually pink, should be applied in a round spot in the center of each cheek, and the spot should be blended somewhat at the edges. The lips should be small with a pronounced cupid’s bow. The natural eyelashes can be darkened with mascara or false ones added. The eyes should be made to took as round as possible. An inexpensive wig with shiny, synthetic hair is usually preferable to an expensive one. Other types of dolls will, of course, require other kinds of makeup.

FIGURE 19-13   Tiger. (Makeup by student Kathy Ross.)

FIGURE 19-14   Auguste clown makeup. (By “Ambrose.”)

ELVES Elves are usually pictured as very small with pointed or butterfly-shaped ears, large mouths, small turned-up noses or long pointed ones, and round or slanted eyes. The hair may be short or long. Older elves usually have beards. Red cheeks are appropriate for good-natured elves of any age.

FIGURE 19-15   A Zombie Scientist. A full face prosthetic with sage-colored skin with yellow highlights and blue shadows. (Makeup designed and applied by Paul Hadobas.)

FIGURE 19-16   Devil as jester. From an old print.

FAIRIES Fairies tend to be diminutive and graceful, unless they have turned bad, in which case they will appear more evil and witch-like. Wicked fairies (Carabosse in The Sleeping Beauty, for example) are more like wicked witches and are sometimes played by men, giving them stronger, less feminine features. Emphasis in the makeup should, of course, be on wickedness—dark, slanting eyebrows, close together; evil, piercing eyes, etc. (See WITCHES.) Good witches may tend to look more like fairies.

FIGURE 19-17   Sixteenth-century devil’s head.

The skin color for good fairies is usually light and delicate—shell pink, lavender, orchid, pale blue, or green, gold, or silver are possibilities. Red shades, being more human, should be avoided. Metallic flakes or sequins are sometimes used. The flakes usually adhere to greasepaint. If they don’t, you might try rubber-mask grease, or you might use stubble paste (see Appendix A) as an adhesive. Sequins can be attached with a latex adhesive or spirit gum.

FIGURE 19-18   Demon. English door knocker.

The features should be delicate and well formed. The ears may or may not be pointed. A delicate lip coloring should be used but no cheek rouge. The eyebrows and sometimes the eyes may be slanted. The hair of female fairies is usually long and golden.

GHOSTS Ghosts are usually thought of as being pale and rather indistinct. Highlighting is, of course, essential in achieving an appropriate ghostly effect. As for the makeup, pale, bloodless colors—such as white or lighter, grayed tints of blue, lavender, greenish yellow, or yellowish green—might be used. The bone structure can be highlighted with white or pale tints of the base color and shadowed with gray, especially in the eye sockets, which should be the most deeply shadowed areas of the face. Hair on the head and on the face can be white or gray.

FIGURE 19-19   Saytr. A brown creme makeup was set with a brown pressed powder. (Makeup designed and applied by Paul Hadobas.)

FIGURE 19-20   Evil Sea Creature. Latex over tissue that was tinted with green food coloring. (Makeup designed and applied by Paul Hadobas.)

The ghost of a specific character should usually resemble the character—except, of course, in color. The makeup in FIGURE 12-10E, though not intended as the makeup of a ghost, might, with less warmth in the coloring, be so used.

A gray nylon stocking worn over the face (with or without makeup underneath) will increase the effect of ghostliness.

GNOME Gnomes are commonly thought of as living underground. They are always mischievous and nearly always unfriendly. They may be very ugly, even deformed. A long nose, prominent cheekbones, jutting brow and receding forehead, pointed chin, receding chin, fat cheeks, sunken cheeks, large ears, very bushy eyebrows, no eyebrows, pop eyes, small and beady eyes, and bulging forehead are possible characteristics. Older gnomes may have long and flowing beards. The skin may be very wrinkled and either very pale or very sallow. (FIGURE 19-21)

GOBLINS Goblins are believed to be evil and mischievous. Rough and swarthy skin, slanted slits for eyes, enormous mouths, flat or long and carrot-shaped noses, extremely large ears, and pointed teeth are possibilities to be considered in the makeup.

GROTESQUES Grotesques are creatures (human or nonhuman) that are in some way distorted or bizarre. The Weird Sisters in Macbeth are sometimes made up as grotesques.

MONSTERS This category covers a variety of creatures, from mechanical men to werewolves. If the monster is to be animalistic, the hair should grow low on the forehead and perhaps cover a good deal of the face. The nose usually needs to be widened and flattened. False teeth made to look like fangs will make the monster more terrifying. But if the creature is to appear in a children’s play, it should be conceived with some discretion. Gory details, such as blood streaming from an open wound and eyes torn out of their sockets, might well be saved, if they are to be used at all, for adult horror plays. Foreheads can be raised and heads squared off, eyes rearranged, teeth made large and protruding, and so on. Skin-texture techniques—tissue with latex, tissue and spirit gum, latex and bran or cornmeal—can be used to good effect.

OGRES An ogre is usually conceived to be a hideous monster who feeds on human beings. Prosthetic applications will undoubtedly be needed. You might consult the suggestions for making up a gnome and then exaggerate them.

PAN Pan is the mythological Greek god of forests, flocks, and pastures. His head and body are those of an elderly man, and his lower parts are those of a goat. He is usually depicted with horns.

PIERROT Pierrot and Pierrette are often made up with a white foundation covering all exposed flesh. Ivory or very pale pink can be used if preferred. The lips should be small and quite red with a pronounced cupid’s bow. The natural brows should be blocked out and high arched ones painted on with black eyebrow pencil. The eyes should be well defined, and the rouge should be two round spots. For a more completely stylized makeup, rouge, lips, and eyebrows might all be in the shape of diamonds or other simple geometric figures. The design of the costume should harmonize.

FIGURE 19-21   Foam latex gnome. By TEXA FX Group using GM Foam System for a French children’s television show. A. Clay sculpt by Stephan Tessier B. Subject, Olivier Xavier. C. Application of Glatzan bald cap, foam cheeks, and chin using Pros-Aide adhesive. For perfect edges, brush Pros-Aide on the skin and let dry; apply prosthetic; paint a little 70% isopropyl alcohol onto appliance edge (it will soak through and reactivate the glue); seal edges with Pros-Aide. D. Forehead and ears are attached and painted with PAX, PAX Wash, and a touch of rubber-mask greasepaint. E. Wig and beard are pre-shaped on a form and set with Krylon Crystal Clear then applied with matte spirit gum.(Makeup and photographs by Stephan Tessier of TEXA FX Group of Quebec, Canada.)

STATUARY All exposed flesh should be made up; the color depends on the color of the material of which the statue is supposedly made. Grays, grayed blues, grayed greens, and grayed violets are useful for shadowing. Avoid warm tones unless the statue is of a color that would require warm shadows. Whether or not the makeup should be powdered will depend on the material of which the statue is supposedly made. If the finish would naturally be shiny, a creme or a grease foundation without powder can be used. A dull finish requires a water-soluble or a powdered creme or grease foundation.

Gold, silver, or bronze statues can be made with metallic body makeup. The effect is excellent, but the technique should be used with care (see discussion in Appendix A under Metallic Makeup).

TOYS Makeup for toys other than dolls—as, for example, tin or wooden soldiers or marionettes—can best be copied from the actual toys. Their unreality should be stressed in order to counteract the obvious lifelike qualities of the actor.

TROLLS Trolls live underground or in caves and are usually thought of as being stupid, ugly, and hateful. They have been described as having large, flabby noses, enormous ears, rotten teeth, and disgusting skin. For the skin, the face might be covered with latex over mounds of derma wax. For a rougher texture, miller’s bran could be added. (For wonderful illustrations of trolls, goblins, brownies, elves, and other fairy creatures, see Faeries, a book by Brian Froud and Alan Lee.)

FIGURE 19-22   Wicked Witch for the Wizard of Oz. A green pancake base with chartreuse highlights and glitters mixed with clear hair gel. (Makeup designed and applied by Paul Hadobas.)

VAMPIRES A vampire is a preternatural being that spends its days in a coffin and comes out only at night to drink blood. Since it never sees the light of day, it invariably has a pale, bloodless complexion—with the exception of the lips, which are sometimes abnormally red. Dark hair is conventional, with dark eyebrows slanting upward. The face should usually be thin and rather emaciated.

ZOMBIE In voodoo this is the body of a dead person that silently mimics life by acting as a slave. A zombie can also be a living person enslaved by having his or her soul magically removed.

WITCHES Traditional witches (see FIGURE 19-23), usually have sharp, hooked noses, prominent cheekbones, sunken cheeks, thin lips, small sunken eyes, prominent pointed chins, numerous wrinkles, straggly hair, clawlike hands, warts and hair on the face, and seldom more than one or two good teeth. The complexion may be light or dark, sallow or swarthy, gray or puce. It might even be yellow, red, blue, green, or violet.

FIGURE 19-23   Three witches, a devil, and a demon.

Witches can, however, be good or bad, young or old, ugly or beautiful. And the makeup can be realistic or stylized. Whereas a wicked old witch might have a face the texture and color of a dried apple, a good young witch might have a face of alabaster with hair of metallic gold. A bad (but sophisticated) young witch, on the other hand, could have a face with a glint of steel, slashed with jet black eyebrows over heavily lashed, slanted eyes. And then there are those witches who look exactly like everybody else and not like witches at all.