In the first 15 minutes of "Les Miserables" there are as many as 150 costume changes.
Marius Company Photo
"The costumes are there to enhance the story not stick out from it," said Stevens, the show's wardrobe coordinator for nine months. "If you leave a performance asking, 'What was going on with Cosette's skirt?' then I haven't done my job."
Even before the 31/2-hour musical opens tomorrow night at Blaisdell Concert Hall, "Les Miserables" no doubt will be Hawaii's blockbuster theater event of the year. Based on Victor Hugo's classic novel, the epic saga sweeps through three turbulent decades of 19th-century France. The show also is the story of one man, the fugitive Jean Valjean, who is pitted against the cruel and self-righteous Inspector Javert in a life-long struggle to evade capture.
And though "Les Miserables" may be known primarily known for the music, you will notice the costumes, no matter how Stevens strives to have them blend in.
The $4.2 million production - one of the most costly and elaborate Broadway shows ever mounted for touring - replicates the Broadway production in its entirety. That means the touring productions are the same all over the world and you'll see here what you would see in the Broadway production.
"It's of the utmost importance to maintain consistency in all the productions, from Broadway to Hong Kong," said Stevens, 29.
That consistency is particularly focused on the costumes, which are manufactured in London. The fabric is bought from a mill in Switzerland where it is made to look old fashion, in a nonprocessed way, and then aged. Costumes are fastened by buttons and zippers - no Velcro here - because the producers want everything to look authentic, Stevens said.
"Les Miserables" has about 3,500 costume pieces used in each performance - shoes, scarves, belts, shirts, vests, stockings, pantaloons, camisoles, and jewelry - with as many as 200 total costume changes for all the 35 cast members.
Stevens' job, along with two assistants, and several "dressers," laundry persons and seamstresses hired locally, is to keep the costumes organized and in working order.
The hardest costumes to protect are the ones that are supposed to look like they're falling apart, which involves lots of dying and distressing.
"They have to look like rags and yet be durable enough to survive eight performances a week," Stevens said.
"Les Miserables" costumes contain no synthetic materials, only silk, linen, cotton and wool. Linen is the hardest to maintain because it dries out and becomes brittle; cotton does the same thing but not as quickly, Stevens said.
For every show, the staff irons more than 90 shirts and 50 bloomers and does as many as 20 loads of laundry, including daily washings of undergarments and stockings. Shirts are washed twice a week; outer garments - jackets and pants - are dry cleaned once a month.
In each town where the show plays, Stevens hires 14 "dressers," each responsible for organizing costumes for two actors. Nine other locals are hired to care for the costumes with ironing, laundering, sewing, and one who "goes around to catch anything that needs to be done," Stevens said.
There's a sort of controlled chaos during the show's prologue which calls for the cast to change several times and fast, as many as 150 costume changes in the first 15 minutes.
Actors rush off stage, tear off clothes, then put on a new costume that's been piled on a chair waiting for them, Stevens said. Sometimes they even wear part of the new costume underneath so they gradually get thinner in the first five scenes.
During a show anything can happen. A rip here, a hem drops there and lots of things that Stevens and company may notice that the audience misses. Hems on pants and skirts, and knee and butt areas of costumes wear out the soonest, he said.
"Rips usually occur along seams, so it's pretty easy to repair quickly. Sometimes we do it just with safety pins because there's no time to sew. The show has to go on and it will, even if we have to put the actor in a costume that's a slightly different color or style."
Each actor's costume and accessories are on an individual inventory list. When they come off stage, their next costume is layed on a chair; a basket is also there to place the costumes they've finished wearing.
The Thernadier gang members have the most costume changes - about 16; the least is Javert, the policeman, with four.
The most expensive costumes are the 1840 hoop-style, silk gowns worn by Cosette and Madame Thernadier in the wedding reception scene, about $10,000. The handmade dresses have several layers of silk. The most expensive men's costume is Javert's suit, about $5,000.
What's the best size for an actor? The "exact size" of the actor he's replacing but that doesn't happen very often, Stevens said.
His favorite "Les Miserables" costume?
"None at this point, I hate them all and I would like to burn them," Stevens said laughing. "Like any job, it's trying at times. Then I watch a show and am still moved by a piece after hearing it 150 times. It reminds me why I'm here."
"Les Miserables" premiered in the United States in December 1986, opened on Broadway in 1987 and has been seen by more than 38 million with more than $1 billion in gross revenues.
Salonga performs the role of Eponine in "Les Miserables," which opens tomorrow at Blaisdell Concert Hall. Salonga made her professional debut at age seven in the Repertory Philippines' production of "The King and I." In 1989 she traveled to London to play the role of Kim in "Miss Saigon," winning a Laurence Olivier Award. In 1991 she performed the same role on Broadway, winning a Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics' awards.
The facts
What: Les Miserables