Panto’s charismatic theatre style returns to the Bay Area with detailed craftsmanship from ArtU Costume Design faculty, students, and alumni.
Magic comes to the Bay Area this December as Peter Pan lands at the Presidio Theatre. The production involves faculty, students, and alums from the Academy of Art, including Costume Design instructor Alina Bokovikova, students Bianca Hernandez-Knight (MFA), Zoe Arnold (BFA), and acting student Joel Ochoa (MFA) for Presidio’s annual Panto performance. They are also joined by corsetry instructor Julie Englebrecht and Costume Design alums Marisely Cortes, Yang “Casey” Cao, and Jazz Santiago to work on wardrobe production.
Since 2021, Presidio Theatre has staged Panto productions based on the UK tradition that combines elements of drag, slapstick comedy, and musicals to entertain families during the winter holiday season.
Associate Producer and Production Designer Sean Riley walked Fashion School Daily through the collaborative process of setting up the stage and creating a San Francisco-style Panto universe with other members of the production.
This is Riley and Bokovikova’s fourth year working together on crafting a new tradition for the Bay Area, but they have previously worked on productions, including Shotgun Player’s 2018 run of Iron Shoes. Riley commented on Bokovikova’s work ethic, praising her ability to be both decisive and flexible throughout the process.
He explained the collaboration with Bokovikova as one of the fundamental backbones of the show. “We first try to define where our world exists, which is quite abstract, but in terms of reality. How fantastic do we want it to be? How grounded in reality are we going to go? That’s what Alina and I have to work on. More so than any of the other collaborators, she and I share a burden of early decision-making because we work in a plastic medium. We work in a medium that cannot be changed easily. She has to have the patterns done, and the silhouettes have to be working months ahead of time. And I have to have these drawings ready months ahead of time. That puts pressure on the two of us to make decisions that later might turn out to be wrong if we make those decisions very far up front in the development process. It also puts us out front to make choices that end up becoming global choices for the entire production.”
Due to the costumes’ complexities and larger-than-life advertisements plastered on billboards and buses around the Bay Area, Bokovikova’s process on the main characters started in early May. This allowed details like hand-painted and dazzled skulls on Captain Hook’s jacket or butterflies all over Tinkerbell’s dress, as well as Peter Pan’s playful mish-mash of leaf-like appliques on his shirt, to show through in promotional materials.
Tinkerbell and Peter Pan. Photography by Terry Lorant
Sean Riley further commented on the production process: “Where we work, we develop this large-scale vision really quickly. All of the artistic collaborators have that same vision. It allows us to be very communal because we trust each other, and everybody does things personally. It’s a great creative group in that sense.”
Riley showed Fashion School Daily his 3D renders and the color palette that was decided early in the year and spoke to his inspiration for stage design. Inspired by cuckoo clocks and leaning heavily into pirates, he developed a turntable stage.
“This is what I’m imagining our Neverland is, right? It’s a fantastical, otherworldly place in my mind, but it doesn’t have architecture.” He referenced while showing his schematics, “We all have different versions. By its nature, it’s to be outside with no architecture. A magical world where the rules of physics are suspended a little bit.”
As Riley explained the team’s stylistic choices, he addressed the biggest challenge of this family-oriented show.
“One of the challenges of the Panto form is we’re trying to create a show that effectively works on multiple levels at the same time,” said Riley. “You’ve got some slapstick for the kids, you’ve got some little off-color humor happening for Mom and Dad, and then the real hard one to catch is the middle ground, that is getting teenagers involved. We do our best to engage with them through rewriting contemporary songs, like BTS, and try to get in something for everyone.”
Of course, no production is without challenges. Especially when it comes to working with material that includes Broadway productions, a Disney movie, and books that tell its tale. Bokovikova also commented on the challenge when it comes to creating costumes for the iconic characters Tinkerbell and Peter Pan, who appear in their signature tones, while also adding Bay Area drag scene flavor to familiar characters like Hook by infusing touches of fuchsia to his brocade frock coat. Hook is played by the charismatic, returning talent Rotimi Agbabiaka, who previously graced Presidio Theatre as Aladdin in The Magic Lamp and Hernia in Sleeping Beauty.
A lively cast and backstage crew shared laughs in the dressing room during the fittings as Bokovikova and Englebrecht stuffed the chicken’s bums to ensure proper fluff to support another tail during a lizard-disguised dance number.
Panto Chickens. Photography by Terilyn Steverson
“The mandate is you’ve got to have chickens [as a traditional Panto element], but what does that really mean?” Asked Riley. “That’s where working with Alina is great, she made them in patchwork colors, they’re almost like stuffed toys.” The beloved Chicken costumes and oversized poke bonnet hats were easy to reconduct from one production to another, ensuring continuity and recognizable characters the public would recall from the previous years. To add a touch of San Francisco flavor, the patchwork features fabrics referencing Bay Area sports and the 49ers.
Part of what makes Panto so magical is the elaborate costumery involved, especially that of the signature Dame, another iconic Panto character. This year Dame Dolores O’Farrell is the storyteller, having her own plot line interlaced into the classic Peter Pan. Played by Curt Branom, the Dame wears three decadent costumes, including a multi-layered skull and cross-bones dress with a pirate ship setting sail in her red curls. Another costume of hers involves a storybook corset, complete with custom fabric illustrating the tale of Peter Pan on a full skirt to match. Her third costume is a surprise privy only to the audience in the final act as her plot comes to an end.
The Dame Dolores O’Farrell. Photography by Terry Lorant
Another surprise that the show has is the amount of unexpected characters. Students joined Bokovikova and Engelbrecht during fittings, taking notes on measurements and adjusting details that had to be figured out after a long conversation between the choreographers and the costume crew. Such decisions as repositioning a triceratop tail higher on the back or placing dinosaur tails where they should fall to ensure nobody trips during a fantastical dance number are important, serious, and silly examples of the discussions that Panto’s costume design requires.
During this dance number, an array of dinosaurs and reptiles emerge on the stage, complete with a Komodo Dragon bouncer. While not originally part of Neverland’s flora and fauna, Presidio Theatre’s addition of dinosaurs creates a playful touch, guaranteeing a one-of-a-kind experience. Especially when paired with contemporary songs, re-imagined with Peter-Pan-ized lyrics, as the dinosaurs boogie on the turntable.
“I just love being in this environment. I’ve grown up with community theatre and being backstage as an actor, as somebody helping with the costumes, and even as a spotlight operator. I just really love the feeling of this and the energy of it… There’s the glitz and glamour from the costumes, and there’s just something special and familiar about it.” BFA Costume Design student Zoe Arnold commented on her time as an intern on set.
Costume Design renderings by Alina Bokovikova
Another student, Bianca Hernandez-Knight, is having her first taste of theatre productions as an Assistant Costume Designer. Previously, Hernandez-Knight worked in the journalism world for 15+ years before pursuing her love of costumes (fueled in part by costume drama Pride and Prejudice and work by costume designers Trisha Biggar and Catherine Martin.)
“I was brought on as Assistant Costume Designer in August, and I started doing a lot of tasks related to the costume shop. Assistant very much means assisting in whatever needs doing to make sure people have their costumes and we have what we need to make everything.” Hernandez-Knight described her role to FSD.
Outside of making sure actors are fully dressed on stage, students like Yang “Casey” Cao, focus on treating costumes with care during quick changes and fittings.
“Sometimes we have less than a minute to completely switch an actor’s costume,” Cao explained. “This not only demands seamless coordination with the actors but also requires impeccable preparation and quick reflexes.”
Cao graduated from ArtU this summer, and she feels extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to work on such a large-scale production shortly after graduating.
“This experience has not only reinforced my passion for costume work but also motivated me to strive for excellence in this field as I build my career.”
While costume design students and alums learn the importance of collaboration and fuel their passion for their craft, a familiar face from ArtU is on stage. Acting as a swing for multiple parts and as a member of the ensemble, Joel Ochoa is equally excited to work on Presidio’s presentation of the redhead impish boy and his crew in his debut on the Panto stage. Students may know Ochoa for his social media work on the Academy of Art’s Instagram and Tiktok, providing relatable and informative content.
The detailed costumes, paired with the magical musical numbers and charismatic cast, dazzle under the stage light. So grab your fairy dust, your best mates, and a sense of adventure to celebrate the holiday season at the Presidio Theatre!
Peter Pan will run from December 3-29 with tickets ranging from $17-68 and a total runtime of 120 minutes. Tickets can be purchased here: https://www.presidiotheatre.org/show/2024-peter-pan-panto/
By Bea Pritchard, MA Journalism. Cover photography by Terry Lorant.
