Red Dancer Costume Build
Currently, I'm working on recreating the costume of the dancer in red from Cirque du Soleil's BAZZAR. I altered basic patterns to make the unique shapes of the show's style and will be hand painting all the designs on the fabric.
Striped Fabric
There are two main patterns I need to paint for this costume. The jacket and shorts have red stripes with smaller black lines overlaid, so I spent a long time painting all the pattern pieces before sewing them together. I made a plastic template that let me space out the stripes evenly and make the smaller lines neat and consistent. The photos below show the process of painting, the 14 finished pieces, and a reference of the original costume.
Original costume for reference
Photo Credit: @dugikrisz on Instagram
Jacket
Here are the front and back views of the jacket so far. I'll be putting on buttons to attach the two front panels and elastic on the sides to attach them to the back. I started with a suit jacket pattern as a base, then refitted it and reshaped it, having to draft the collar and the sleeve caps from scratch. I added a lining because the original pattern didn't have one and will be installing snaps inside the sleeve caps to attach to the removable sleeve pieces once they're ready.
Undershirt
The undershirt will be finalized and painted after the jacket, shorts, and sleeves are done so I can confirm which parts will be visible. I wanted it to be made of spandex so it would stretch and breath well, but I also needed it to look like a collared button-down shirt underneath the jacket. To accomplish this, I made a separate false collar out of cotton fabric so it would hold a stiffer shape and could snap in underneath the main shirt. I made the shirt zip up, but added a flap that would snap in place over the zipper to hide it. After I paint it, I'll add buttons to the front of the flap so it'll look like a button-down shirt when closed. I used the same spandex fabric to make leggings that will also be finished later.
Hat
For the character's hat, I bought a basic red felt hat online and modified it. I cut a hole in the side like the original costume's hat has and then repainted it a closer color. I then sewed a band for it to match the rest of the costume.