Looking at other artists

Sara Tyndall

'Making it' as a theatre makeup artist is a hard task, however there are a few who do succeed, Sara Tyndall being one of these people. She make her break in the the West End, and has worked for shows such as Mamma Mia and Beauty and the Beast, her current job being at the Lion King. 

The Lion King is famed for having extravagant and costume and makeup design. Sara and her team are responsible for creating the makeup that compliments the stunning costume and mask design. 

Sara has been in her present role since 1999, following her successful career in numerous different West End productions. Before this she attended the London College of Fashion and qualified with a BTEC HND in Theatre Studies, Specialist Make-up for Film, TV and Theatre. 

Sara carries the responsibility of deciding and creating the overall look of the show in terms of makeup and wigs, there are 14 very unique characters to focus on each with very different personalities. Sara must use makeup and colour create mood and feeling. The makeup for the Lion King is much more complex and intiricate the most shows, and consequently an artist Sara clearly has had a chance to flourish and show her true capabilities. This is why She is my inspiration during my study of Theatre Makeup. 

Exploring theatre makeup

Study of theatre makeup

The importance of theatre makeup.

Few people understand the great importance of theatrical makeup on stage, if it's not used the applied the right way, well, it's pointless. No face is immune to the necessity of makeup on stage, under the glare of modern day theatre lighting appears shapeless, dull and without identity. 

The function of theatre makeup.

The primary object of theatre makeup is to accentuate and enhance an actors features, and define there eyes and lips, if these were not defined the actor/actress would look featureless. Another important factor is to the face an appearance the audience would expect it to have depending on the character being portrayed. For example, if you were portraying the classic 'villain' makeup could be used to create a chiseled face, dark line, hollowed eyes. Or perhaps a 'damsel in distress', makeup could be used to create soft contours, peachy cheeks and bright eyes. 

 How to create successful theatre makeup.

Theatre makeup is an acquired skill, and to be truly brilliant at it you must work on it. It is just as much an art as painting, dancing or acting. You need to paint and sculpt the face, understand the facial structure and create your pieces using experience and imagination. You also have to analyse facial expressions like frowning and laughing, and study the lines and wrinkles that appear on the face when portraying these emotions so that you know how to recreate this through makeup.

Identify and agree an appropriate Arts Challenge

Unit 1 Part A

Summary of my arts challenge.

My primary arts challenge shall be to create theatre makeup, I shall create an array of different pieces of theatre makeup based on a particular theme.

Complete description of my arts challenge. 

First I will create theatre makeup pieces based on the theme of 'The seven deadly sins', I chose this theme as I believe it is an interesting topic that I have always wanted to explore. Once I have created a piece based on this theme I shall photograph it and upload it to my blog in order to receive feedback. I shall also record my inspiration and research into my arts form and theme.

Why I have chosen this challenge.

I have chosen this challenge as I have always been interested in theatre makeup, and believe I wonder enjoy creating it however have never had the chance or reason to do so. I have basic knowledge of theatre makeup and wish to develop this and so wish to incorporate it into my arts award as it is the perfect chance to practice this arts form.