The costume makers’ labour from within the profession in Greece

This presentation introduces the costume maker’s work in the context of theatrical production in Greece from ‘within the profession’, that is, through the makers’ voices. It revisits two projects that I have undertaken: A) an exhibition dedicated to one independent maker, built around the maker’s work with 12 different designers as an example of how the maker can interpret different concepts and can contribute to final ideas. B) ethnographic research during which interviews were conducted with 28 cutters and seamstresses who worked at the Greek National Opera costume workshop between 1998-2012, which concentrated on distinct features of the costume maker’s profession in the context of Greece, such as: the fragmentation of the work; the organizational complexity and related hierarchies; the affinity in the ways of working and the exchange of workers with the fashion field; the makers’ background and work conditions including the need to work until an old age. The presentation comments on how the study of the costume maker profession offers materials for further artistic, as well as sociological inquiry, as a gender and class experience. My aim is to bring into an international environment this non-visible area of theatrical labour for discussion with expert professionals who understand the topic from their own practice