POSITION ANNOUNCEMENT:
PART-TIME COSTUME DESIGNER AND ASSOCIATE COSTUME DESIGNER

What if the Beast were an arrogant prince from the downtown 1980s art scene? What does the clothing in the forest of Arden look like circa 1966? How do you make sure every student feels comfortable and supported in their costume? These are just some of the questions the Saint Ann’s costume designers and associate designers ask ourselves as we collaborate, design, and construct the many costumes for our productions. 

Welcome to the world of costume at Saint Ann’s, where costume designers not only dress the students in our casts and collaborate with the production team, but work with student performers and student costume makers in rehearsals, fittings, and classes to support and enliven the stories told on our stage. Saint Ann’s School costume designers and associate costume designers work collaboratively with the theater department faculty to support our students in developing their creative voices through theater and dance performances in grades 4-12. These performances and their design components are developed during after school and weekend rehearsals as well as classroom time throughout the week. Each position will include designing and assisting several of these performance projects as well as helping to maintain the costume shop for the 2023-24 school year. A collaborative, creative, and flexible approach is vital as the designer and design associate balances the need to stay organized in the midst of the energy and excitement of production work. Additionally, strong candidates will have a demonstrated commitment to equity and inclusion and to working with students and colleagues across different identities. 

ABOUT SAINT ANN’S SCHOOL

Since its founding in 1965, Saint Ann’s has embraced a commitment to education for its own sake, oriented to the capacities of each individual student, free of the encumbrances of formal grading, prizes, and rankings. At the same time, we are unabashedly committed to excellence in all that we do. The lives of our graduates speak powerfully to the potential of an education based on these principles to ignite a passion for learning and to sustain creative energy in every field of endeavor. We accomplish this by offering talented students instruction shaped by creative and dedicated faculty, forming a true community of learners from pre-Kindergarten through high school. With a faculty and staff numbering more than 300, and 1090 students, and occupying space in seven separate buildings clustered in Brooklyn Heights, Saint Ann’s draws most of its students from nearby Brooklyn neighborhoods as well as Manhattan. Known for its commitment to an education that brings together passionate and talented teachers with gifted and motivated students, Saint Ann’s has earned an outstanding reputation in academic disciplines and the arts. Our accomplished teachers bring to the classroom experience as published authors and scholars, working artists, composers, performers and filmmakers.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Design and assist in the design of 3-5 productions throughout the 2023-2024 academic year.

   

• Work collaboratively with the production team on the development of costume designs that uplift the student performers and tell the story of the production or dance piece. 

   

• Create costumes from initial concept to final details.

   

• Construct costumes in all manner of methods from machine to hand sewing and beyond.

   

• Organize and facilitate student costume fittings with the support of division offices during rehearsal hours, free periods, and lunch periods. 

   

• Coordinate production sewing work during Costume class times and help to manage a student costume crew during the run of each show in which the candidate is involved.

   

• Organize and maintain the wardrobe needs during the show run and for the strike of each show in which the candidate is involved.

   

• Establish and maintain a safe working environment and adhere to production budgets, deadlines and protocols.

   

• Help maintain the organization and supplies in the shop, including start of year and end of year set-up, break down and stock purging as needed.

   

• Attend department meetings, support departmental initiatives, and communicate and collaborate with divisional offices on student support.

   

• Teach some Middle School Costume classes depending on registration and interest.

   

REQUIREMENTS

• A love of working with children and ability to embrace their imaginative impulses through the creation of costumes.

   

• Demonstrated experience in theater and dance costume collaboration.

   

• Strong sewing construction skills.

   

• Passion for sharing your love of costume design and construction with students.

   

• Strong planning and organizational skills.

   

• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

   

COMPENSATION

Fees per show range from $2,200-$4,500 depending on the candidate’s role for the production.

TO APPLY

 
A brief cover letter that speaks directly to the mission of the school and a resume should be emailed to [email protected]. Candidates who identify as members of historically underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply. Applications accepted until May 30th, 2023. Anticipated start date of fall 2023.

NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY POLICY

The School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, gender, age, marital status, disability, national or ethnic origin or sexual orientation in carrying on its educational activities or in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, employment policies, financial aid programs, and athletic and other school administered programs.