Performances in front of an audience or a camera can call for basic make-up, or something more, like period looks, or fantasy, age, injury, and other special effects |
| Well, honestly, most actors do. Make-up is the last stop between an actor’s brain and his or her audience. It brings the actor’s work to the next level by outwardly expressing things about their character they may not be able to on their own, like looking the right age, part of the appropriate historic era, of the right culture, social status, health, or even the proper species of animal! |
| Erin started art lessons
around the time she first held a pencil. Her first art teacher was her
mother, an
award-winning fine artist and graduate of Moore College of Art and
Design in Philadelphia. She took her first class in stage make-up when
she was
14, a year after the first time she worked on a theatrical production
at school. Erin completed four years of
sequential training in the studio art program at the Hun School of
Princeton before going on to visual arts studies in college. Undergraduate training includes studies in BFA programs at the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan, and at Long Island University's School of Visual and Performing Arts at C.W. Post. Erin's master of arts degree in Media Communications was earned on full scholarship for visual communication from Drake University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication in Des Moines, Iowa. Erin's working background in the arts includes illustrating children's educational texts and storybooks, and painting stage sets for productions at professional, community, and school theatres. Credits for Make-up
and Hair/Wig Design include productions of Kiss Me, Kate, Oklahoma, Crazy for You, Driving Miss Daisy, Deathtrap, Pinocchio, She Loves Me, Dracula, Noises Off, Macbeth, Grease, Neil Simon's Rumors, and Doctor Dolittle (pictured above)
performed at facilities including the Kelsey Theatre in West Windsor,
NJ,
and
the Washington Crossing State Park Open Air Theatre in Hopewell, NJ,
among
others. Other design and technical credits in theatre include props design and building (see OTHER THEATRICAL ARTS), stage management, directing, and she is also a produced playwright (a member of the Dramatists Guild of America since 1992). Erin has worked as a designer for professional companies including Passage Theatre in Trenton, painted, built, and sewn things for McCarter Theatre Company in Princeton, worked in Bugs Bunny's dressing room at Six Flags Great Adventure, made things, coordinated things, fixed things, run a follow spot, and swung a hammer for various venues and companies including the Paramount Theatre and Convention Hall on the Boardwalk in Asbury Park, Princeton Opera Association, Shakespeare '70, Actors' NET of Bucks County, the Theatre Guild of New Jersey, Like 40 Productions, and others from New York to Philadelphia. |
|
Rates for stage and media work are determined by consultation. Please call or e-mail regarding your project needs.
|
| Jim
Barone, Elvis Tribute Artist New Jersey Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest and Festival Union County Center for the Performing Arts, Rahway, NJ, July 2008 In the photo above to the left,actor/performer Jim Barone as he looks when catching a game at Yankee stadium. On the right, Jim as Elvis Presley Jim Barone is an extremely talented performer with an uncanny ability to sound EXACTLY like Elvis Presley. This comes in handy, or course, since Jim is a professional Elvis tribute artist. When it came time to take part in a series of progressive regional competitions officially sponsored by the estate of The King, designed to name the country's top Elvis tribute artist, Jim thought he would try to find someone to help create an advantage by doing a resemblance make-up. Erin learned that Jim specializes in presenting the Elvis of the mid-1950s, did some research then a test make-up, then returned for each of the competition days to help prepare Jim for his performances. Jim sailed through to the finals in a large field of professionals from around the world gathered to compete in New Jersey over the Fourth of July holiday, and wrapped up by winning third place. |
| Driving
Miss Daisy Kelsey Theatre, West Windsor, NJ, February 2008 Click above for information about shows at the Kelsey Theatre. In the press photo above, Allwyn Baskin as Hoke takes the wheel for Eve Connolly as Miss Daisy. In this Pulitzer Prize winning play, three actors takes us on a journey through the hearts and minds of a trio of Atlanta natives whose lives are intertwined from the years 1948 through 1973. Each character ages throughout the play, with Miss Daisy starting at age 72 in 1948 through age 97 in 1973. Her son, Boolie, goes from age 40 to 65, and Hoke, Daisy's driver (and ultimately, friend), Hoke, goes from age 60 to 85. Erin created this production's make-up, hair and wig designs to depict the various ages and eras of the piece. Award nominations for this production, through the New Jersey Association of Community Theatres, included one for Outstanding Costume Design, which is the umbrella category by which make-up, hair and wig design is also recognized. Driving Miss Daisy marked the second time Erin's work was so noticed by NJACT Perry Award voters. The production itself garnered awards for Best Actress (Eve Connolly as Miss Daisy), Best Actor (Allwyn Baskin as Hoke), Best Director (Dan Maurer), and the 2008 award for Outstanding Production of a Play. Trenton Times Theatre Critic Anita Donovan called Erin's quick change age make-ups, hair and wig designs "wonderful and totally believable." |
| Green
Man Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey at Premiere Stages, Union, NJ for the National New Play Network, June 2007 Actor Spiff Wiegand as the title character discovered it really is pretty easy being green (from head to toe, even) with a bit of help from Erin and a couple of body painting assistants. Photo by Green Man's costume designer Ingrid Proos. Additional photo on the Body Painting page, linked below. A professional Actor's Equity Theatre in residence at Kean University's School of Visual and Performing Arts in Union, NJ, Premiere Stages is dedicated to developing new works from emerging playwrights. As part of the Premiere Play Festival, playwright Jim Knable's Green Man was selected in competition through the National New Play Network for an Equity staged reading. The play was previously workshopped and read under the direction of John Pietrowski at Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey in Madison who presented the piece to the national competition. John remained as the production's director through this latest phase of the play's development and asked Erin to help visualize this drama's mysteriously character-shifting title player, based on a so-called "vegetative deity" in Celtic mythology known as a Green Man. |
| Macbeth ActorsNET of Bucks County The Heritage Center, Morrisville, PA, April – May 2007 Top row, left to right, the Three Witches are Giz Coughlin, Susan Fowler, and Kate Couzens. Hecate, queen of the witches, is Theresa Forsyth Swartz. In the bottom row, Banquo, shown in his ghostly state, is actor Steve Lobis. He is flanked by Tess Ammerman and Tami Feist as the Weird Sister's coven-mates. Far right, Mr. Inspiration. There is a legendary curse associated with this Shakespearean tragedy that makes it a project so feared, theatre types do not even speak its proper name. Laughing in the face of superstition, Erin signed up for the cool and rare chance to design specialty make-up for witches and ghosts and not necessarily go with warts and hooked noses. Meanwhile, a fairly incredible series of mishaps occurred in the final two weeks before opening night, including serious injuries in the cast and a slew of other freaky complications which caused this production of "the Scottish Play" to be delayed two months. But the show must go on (eventually)! Erin explains the design concept: "The make-up design for the witches reflects director Cheryl Doyle's animal totem concept influencing their performances and costuming, including (top row, left to right) a lioness, a bat, and a raven for the Weird Sisters, and their equally weird kin (added for group scenes), a lynx and raccoon. The design for Hecate reflects her Greek goddess namesake's status as a triple goddess of the moon, shown in the trio of images of waxing and waning crescents embracing the new moon over the actress's 'third eye.' For Banquo, the design was meant to show the 'echo' of his gruesome demise (garotting and head wounds) and emphasize his status as a specter, rather than literally depict every nasty wound mentioned in the script (as is done about as often as witches get warts and hooked noses). Plus, his make-up and costume change has to be done in two minutes flat! Special thanks to make-up assistants Tess, Giz, and Kelly, and also to the 13 turkey vultures that, for whatever reason, wandered into suburbia and landed on my neighbor's roof one morning while these designs were in development, thereby inspiring the black, white, and blood red color palette for the creepy creatures in this production." |
| "After
several challenges from the famous curse of 'the Scottish Play,'
Actors' NET of Bucks County has opened Macbeth... the work is two months
late in reaching the stage. No problem -- a packed
opening night audience welcomed it with gusto.... Steve Lobis stands
out as Banquo -- the dining scene in which his ghost appears is done
brilliantly." Stuart Duncan
The Princeton Packet
|
| It's a Wonderful Life, the
Musical Kelsey Theatre, West Windsor, NJ, November – December 2006 Sharing the finale with the company, left to right in the foreground are Jesse Dubin, Zach Levine, and Rosalie Graziano as the Bailey kids, behind them is Toni Campbell as Ma Bailey. Reed Schmidt, as the youngest of the Bailey's, Zuzu, is held by Marty Berrien as George Bailey, next to Vicky Czarnik as Mary Bailey. This musical version of Frank Capra's classic film won glowing reviews and standing ovations. In concert with costume designer Ruth Rittmann, Erin was asked to design wigs and make-up for this complex production with action spanning four decades. During the rehearsal process, hair and make-up looks for the many characters were developed and tested. During performances, a crew of four make-up artists and hair technicians helped the actors move through time, from 1945 back to 1917, ahead to 1929, '32, and '45 again, in two different forms - both the one George knows before his encounter with Clarence the angel, and an alternate reality where George never existed, through which he comes to understand he really is living a wonderful life. As his wife, Mary, Vicky Czarnik wore a series of custom-made human hair wigs that Erin built, which helped to illustrate the various eras and circumstances of the story, from the aftermath of accidentally falling into the pool at the high school dance on her first "date" with George, through taking the plunge with him at their wedding in 1929, to the two different versions of Christmas Eve 1945, with steps along the way. In the photo above showing the finale, Vicky as Mary wears her longest locks (c. 1945), Toni Campbell as Ma Bailey sports a wig custom "painted" salt and pepper, and the grey in the hair of Marty Berrien as George is also painted in. For more photos and information on this detailed and challenging production, click here. |
|
National Flavors Day A good old-fashioned publicity stunt, pulled off in three cities nationwide on one day (the other cities being Chicago and San Francisco). The team of New York body painters, Erin included, set up shop on the stage of the Hard Rock Café on Broadway at Times Square. Over 200 models, aspiring actors, working dancers, at least one Metropolitan Opera chorus singer, and plenty of otherwise interesting and sporting young men and women were covered neck to toe in paints to match bathing suits in colors corresponding with the three flavors of Jose Cuervo tequilas that were about to launch on the national market. For the record, orange represents citrus, green is lime, and the blue represents the “Tropino” flavor that is reported to taste like a blend of pineapple and coconut. |
|
|
|
Outpost: Knightsbridge In the story of this independent film, something really bad happens to unleash a ferocious bacteria on board a naval vessel on a secret mission, turning about a dozen military scientists into zombies. The design concept Erin used for this freshly undead look was inspired by Dan Striepeke’s vision of the post-apocalyptic missile worshipers that lived in the subways Beneath the Planet of the Apes. Creepy, translucent beings with lots of blue veins visible through the pallor. Add a dash of Dr. Phibes, some dog tags, and viola! |
|
The
Wizard of Oz This custom-made Cowardly Lion costume of acrylic plush knit features approximately 30 feet total length in garlands of human extension hair in two different colors and three textures hand-stitched together to form the tail tassel, leg trim, and chest and shoulder mane. Several seriously modified off-the-rack synthetic wigs of different textures form the unit headpiece with attached chin beard and stylish hand-sculpted and painted foam ears. The muzzle is an extensively modified pre-made hot foam latex prosthetic, resculpted inside and out for fit, comfort, and cosmetics. It is finished with custom-blended PAX paint to match the Kryolan SupraColor foundation, and is accented with fiber optic whiskers (not sure if he can receive cable television through them). The whole thing was designed to allow the actor to get into and out of everything himself in minutes, without any assistance, and for the headgear and face to stay absolutely secure and reasonably comfortable for a couple hours each night of a two week run in extremely challenging backstage conditions at a very rustic outdoor amphitheatre in 90 degree-plus heat with equally extreme humidity levels. And that’s all BEFORE hitting the lit stage in a fur suit in front of a packed house of a thousand or so. In August. Thank God, all the preparation and prayers paid off smartly - everything went without a hitch! Marty is also the guy in the red suit in the Dolittle shot at the top of this page. He displays yet another persona (that of Bill Calhoun) at the far left in the group shot from "Kiss Me, Kate" below.
|
| Noises Off Kelsey Theatre, West Windsor, NJ, November 2003 Shown above, make-up designer Erin Penney and actor Kevin Gallagher
"This is what happens when your director needs to cast the role of a 70-something, inebriated English actor and none show up at auditions. So we had to make do with this good looking lunk a good 30-some years too young in reality, employing his acting skills and my paint job to create the character of Selsdon. I added the few missing decades in just under 30 minutes per performance. For others in the cast, I added sardine-proof hairpieces, optically amplified cleavage, and several other special visual illusions involving pigment and paintbrushes."
|
| Kiss Me, Kate Kelsey Theatre, West Windsor, NJ, May 2003 "Big cast, two eras (Elizabethan and early 1950s) and numerous very, very quick changes. I designed make-up including specialty work and hair prosthetics, modified numerous commercial wigs and falls, supervised and instructed members of the company to function independently during production, trained three assistants to help with the application of specialty make-ups and the constant quick changes and also stage managed and built props for this multiple award-nominated production -- one nom was for costume design, yay! Unlike the Oscars, where make-up design has its own award category, there is no separate award for make-up and wig design in professional or community theatre (yet) and is evaluated as an element of the production's costuming. The 2003 NJACT Perry Award nomination for costume design that recognized the gorgeous work of costume designer Ruth Rittmann also honored my own design work, as hair and make-up designer for the production. The Thug in the fedora at center is my brother, Kurt Penney. He’s also shown below sporting sausage curls in another scene from the same production." |
|
Rates by Consultation. Please call or e-mail to discuss your needs. (609) 510-8939 SecondLookFacePainting@gmail.com |
| Check the links below for info on media make-up for special photography including headshots, portraits, weddings and more! |
