Creep It Real This Halloween

Have you ever wanted to re-create a scary or unique look from your favorite movie or play for Halloween? 

Welcome to the Spook Zone

Fall isn’t just pumpkin spice season but it is also fright season, full of tricks and treats. 

I went to my Theater Appreciation class like it was any other day learning about the elements of theatre but the class was in for a  treat!  Our Professor, Stephen Davis, teacher, teaching artist, theater director and primarily a stage actor gave a demonstration on stage makeup. 

He asked each person what they would like to get done .  In the spirit of Halloween and my love for the Walking Dead I asked to get a zombie bite on my inner arm.  Other students got open wounds and a bruise.    We all had great fun applying the products he brought to class for the demonstration.

A FRIGHT TO REMEMBER 

The experience of working with real theater makeup left me with so many questions. I wanted to ask Professor Davis about how he got involved in the makeup field and what some of the techniques are for applying makeup to actors for both live theater and films.   

How did you start your career in makeup?  

I started my journey in Theatrical Makeup as an undergraduate at DePaul University in Chicago. I was part of the School of Drama and was cast in a production of Romeo and Juliet. The experience of live theater changed my view on how to approach my studies. I took a year long course in makeup and was involved in a work study to help teach makeup application to other students. When the makeup company Ben Nye came to Chicago for a Halloween trade show, I volunteered to help at the trade show three years in a row. The owner Ben Nye’s son offered me a job with the company in L.A., California, and after I graduated from DePaul University I accepted the job offer. My subset of skills in makeup application enabled me to use my unique skills in theater makeup application and get paid.  

One of the places outside of school that I received experience was the Lyric Opera of Chicago where I painted faces with makeup that had to be seen beyond a 75-foot orchestra pit and through the entire 4,500 seat theater.

What is the difference between applying makeup for live theater and film?

Theatrical makeup for theater has to be seen from a greater distance from the front of the theater all the way to the back. Film makeup is more detailed and specific.  The use of digital cameras and the ability of cameras to pick up fine detail means that makeup artists must use very fine detailed makeup techniques. The applied makeup must be of the highest quality to keep up with high definition technology as well as the intense performance requirements of the entertainment industry. This means the products must be of a highly pigmented formula and also be of a durable performance grade.

What are your hopes for your students here at Centenary?

I compare it to dropping a pebble into a pond. There is the potential for many ripples as the effect of the pebble in the pond. My hope is that many of my students will be inspired by my development of a skill set of makeup application.

As you register for classes in November, keep an eye out on the course catalog for his Spring course in theater makeup. 

The interview provided so much more knowledge of Professor Davis’s acquired skill set in makeup. His subset of acquired skills at DePaul University became his employment and livelihood. He continues to apply his skills in unique and fun ways as seen at the  Girl Scouts Event called “Creature Feature,” at leadership center in Newark, New Jersey on the Saturday, Oct. 25 and Sunday, Oct. 26 at Camp Dewitt Girl Scouts Heart of New Jersey, where he applied his craft and helping the Scouts learn about makeup application.