The Old Man and the Old Moon

“Song From The Stone” sung and composed by PigPen Theatre Co.

The Old Man and The Old Moon follows the mundane life The Old Man, who fills the moon with liquid light each night. When his wife, The Old Woman, suddenly leaves home in pursuit of a song reminding her of their past, The Old Man must choose whether to follow her on the adventure of a lifetime, or to stay safe in the unchanging routines he had known thus far. The Old Man and The Old Moon is a story of adventure, courage, love, and self fulfillment- originally written by PigPen Theatre Company and performed by University High School in 2019.

Completed Concept

Photography by Jenn Moore and Giana DiTolla, 2019-2020.

My Work

The Old Man and The Old Moon was my first show at Uni, during Fall of my freshman year. I worked among a team of Dressers, which included Camille Cabunag, Ryu Nomura, Elliot Welsh, Sophie Burkhardt, and myself. There was no specified costume designer for this production, so as a team, we were all responsible for contributing design ideas under a rustic, devised theatre aesthetic with guidance from Costume Director Kim Mason. The process encouraged immense growth, as I was constantly sketching, rendering, and searching for reference photos— skills that I would utilize while designing future shows. At the time, I was unsure whether I wanted to ultimately focus on hair, costumes, or makeup, so I explored each production value at some time during the show under leadership by the makeup designer Olivia Biase and hair designer Maddy Gastelo.

Costume, Hair, and Makeup Reference Imagery

After doing dramaturgical research from the script, style of music, and original production by PigPen Theatre Company, the company decided to loosely base Uni’s rendition in the mid-1800s. The costume team took inspiration from shows with similar aesthetics such as Fiddler On the Roof, and from folk music groups such as Mumford and Sons. We also restricted ourselves largely to neutral shades of brown, cream, and grey. When using color, we picked mostly muted hues to align with the rustic feel of the show, and the historical accuracy of what was worn.

Mumford & Sons