Sabrina Notarfrancisco

James Joyce is Dead and so is Paris: The Lucia Joyce Cabaret
By Pig Iron Theatre
Directed by Kenneth Prestininzi
Scenery by Edward T. Morris
Lighting by Masha Tsimring
Photos by Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2015

This avant-garde piece is set in a mental institution and features Lucia Joyce, the artistic, schizophrenic daughter of renowned writer James Joyce. Lucia, a dancer who studied under Isadora Duncan and who dated Samuel Beckett before becoming a patient of Carl Jung, was placed involuntarily in a mental institution at the age of 29. Set simultaneously in an insane asylum and in the “Paris” of Lucia’s schizophrenic mind, this piece follows Lucia and her fellow inmates as they produce and star in their own raucous, rock-n-roll style cabaret.

Twelfth Night
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Kenneth Prestininzi
Scenery by Edward T. Morris
Lighting by Daisy Long
Photos by Edward T. Morris, Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2016

Paisley Park meets Yayoi Kusama.

by George Brant
Directed by Cazimir Liske
Scenery by Edward T. Morris
Lighting by John Burkhart
Photos by S. Notarfrancisco, Edward T. Morris
Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2015

Elephant’s Graveyard recounts the troubling, true story of the public hanging of a massive circus elephant named Mary after she steps on and kills her inexperienced trainer during a parade in Erwin, Tennessee.  Written in a documentary style comprised primarily of monologues, the play explores the themes of mob mentality, insular communities, the exploitation of animals, sensationalism, and racism.

I have always wanted to design a circus piece and was intrigued by director, Caz Liske’s, vision of a black and white world.  Since bright colors are an iconic element of circus costumes, my primary challenge was to find creative ways to intensify other design elements such as line, shape, texture, and value to compensate for the lack of color. Inspiration for this project emerged from a variety of sources – vintage photographs of circus performers, primary source material from Erwin, Tennessee, black and white documentary film, and circus posters.

Click here for the Pinterest research and inspiration board.

By Adam Bock
Directed by Ken Prestininzi
Scenic Design by Edward T. Morris
Lighting Design by Stephen Petrilli
Photos by Vinnie Scarano, Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2013

The Drunken City takes place over three days and focuses primarily on the antics of three, twenty-something brides-to-be on their ill-fated bachelorette’s night out in New York City.  After several cocktails, Marnie who is experiencing some pre-wedding jitters, betrays her fiancé by making out with Frank to the horror of Melissa, who used to date him. After several twists and turns, in which the character’s worlds literally tilt upside down, Marnie finally admits to herself that she is not in love with Gary and calls off the wedding.

My primary inspiration for the costume design came from the cocktail and dragon imagery present in the script. Linda describes New York City as being "like a monster, like a sleeping dragon or some dark creature in the night that cracks open an eye and whispers dark dangerous dark ideas into your ear.” This imagery was the primary motivation behind Linda’s green sequined dress. The cocktail metaphor informed the pink color palette for Marnie.

Music by Leonard Bernstein
Book and Lyrics by Betty Comden & Adolph Green
Directed by Virginia Anderson
Scenery by Tim Golebiewski
Lighting by Sean Nicholl
Photos by Vinnie Scarano

Palmer Stage, Connecticut College 2014

This Golden Age musical, set during WWII, follows the adventures of three sailors during their 24-hour shore leave in New York City.  This production was set inside a hospital room in the Brooklyn Naval Yard, where injured sailor, Gabey, dreams of what shore leave might have been like had his buddies survived the war.

Inspiration for this show came from a variety of sources, WWII era photos, video interviews from NYC's famous Stage Door Canteen, 1940s fashion illustrations, extant sewing patterns, clothing and accessories, and a visit to the Brooklyn Naval Yard and hospital.

Click here for the corresponding Pinterest research and inspiration board.

By Bertolt Brecht
Music by Kurt Weil
Directed by Peter Deffet
Scenery by Tim Golebiewski
Lighting by Tina Louise Jones
Photos by Sabrina Notarfrancisco   

Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2011

This production of The Threepenny Opera was inspired by the economically depressed 1930s and 1970s. After careful research and script analysis, I designed costumes that drew upon both decades and added a few Victorian elements as an homage to the story’s original time period (the 1970s Victorian revival was an added bonus). I used a neutral color palette to preserve visual harmony among the various competing silhouettes, and added oranges and greens for visual interest (colors common to both decades).

Thematically, I focused on the lack of sentimentality between the characters and the business-like nature of familial relationships. I was also drawn to Commissioner Tiger Brown’s desire to hide the city’s beggars in anticipation of Queen Victoria’s visit. Throughout my design, I sought ways to expose “that which should not be seen.” One way I achieved this was to use nylon pantyhose – popularly worn during the 1970s and meant to be invisible – as an outer layer for the prostitute’s costumes.  Under the deconstructed nylons, the ladies wore 1930s style slips, garments traditionally worn as a concealed under layer.

**Photos from this production were included in the Perspectives on Spectacle exhibit, Gallery 26, at the Wimbledon College of Art, London

By Caryl Churchill
Directed by Kenneth Prestininzi
Scenery by Edward T. Morris
Lighting by Daisy Long
Photos by Sabrina Notarfrancisco
Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2015

Set in colonial Africa during the Victorian era, this play not only satirizes Victorian society and colonialism, but also establishes links between Victorian society and sexual oppression.  The genius of this show lies in Churchill’s shrewd casting of the characters. She stipulates that a male actor must play the role of the repressed Victorian wife, Betty, that a female must play the role of her young, gay son, Edward, and that the role of Joshua, their African servant, must be played by a white male. In another unconventional twist, the action of Act 2 continues in 1979 London, but only 25 years have passed in the lives of the characters.

For this piece, it was important to establish a sense of British imperialism in Africa.  To achieve this, I designed cotton and linen costumes comprised of the reds, whites, and blues found in the Union Jack flag. To emphasize Victorian gender disparity, I dressed the male characters in lighter weight, practical silhouettes and the female characters in completely impractical, especially for Africa, Victorian clothing. Churchill vaguely sets Act 1 during the Victorian era, which I capitalized on by selecting a range of Victorian silhouettes that best mirrored each character’s identity. Matriarch, Maud, wore an outmoded, and physically distancing, cage crinoline ensemble reminiscent of Queen Victoria in contrast to the carefully arranged, hyper-feminine bustle dress worn by her oppressed daughter, Betty. I dressed Betty’s young gay son, Edward, in a decidedly unmasculine Little Lord Fauntleroy suit and the radical and progressive Mrs. Saunders in an 1890s-style riding habit revealing her status as a pioneering “New Woman.”

Click here for the Pinterest research and inspiration board.

Music, lyrics and book by Richard O'Brien
Directed by Peter Deffet
Scenery by Tim Golebiewski
Lighting by Tina Louise Jones
Photos by Nick Edwards, Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Tansill Theater, Connecticut College, 2010

Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by James Lapine
Directed by Jimmy Maize
Scenery by Krista Franco
Lighting by Laura Eckelman
Photos by Sabrina Notarfrancisco, Laura Eckelman

Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2013

While collaborating with guest director, Jimmy Maize, and the design team, I became inspired by German marionettes and sought ways to marry the aesthetics of European fairy tale characters with their American counterparts. My many marionette research images influenced the vision for the show allowing me to design fairy tale characters with puppet-like qualities. 

Jimmy also added a meta element to the storytelling by creating a frame in which the actors begin and end the piece in their contemporary clothes, requiring them to transform into an out of their costumes on stage. To accommodate this, I dressed the actors in contemporary looks with neutral tops that could also work with their Into the Woods looks. The actors added skirts, dresses, accessories, etc. over their contemporary clothes transforming into fairy tale characters before the audience's eyes.

Click here for the Pinterest research and inspiration board.

The Songs of Leiber and Stoller
Directed by B. Peter Westerhoff
Scenery by Michael Anania
Lighting by Al Crawford
Photos by Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Connecticut Repertory Theater 2010

A Performance Art Piece
Conceived by Sabrina Notarfrancisco
Space and Lights by Tim Golebiewski
Projections and Photos by Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Apple is a performance art piece that explores the themes of agricultural and industrial pollution and uses the costumed body as a projection surface. The costume is comprised of three distinct layers.  The first layer is a short dress constructed of spacer (a spongy textile most commonly used in molded cup bras).  The second layer is a floor length white dress made from crinkled, sheer, iridescent polyester, and the outermost layer is made from taupe silk organdy.  The layering of these textiles gives an illusion of a hazy, polluted sky.

**The costume rendering for this piece was exhibited in the Costume at the Turn of the Century: 1990-2015 exhibit in Moscow, 2015 and is included in the exhibition catalog.

The Increased Diffculty of Concentration
By Vaclav Havel
Directed by Ben Fisher
Scenery by Tim Golebiewski
Lighting by Shanti Freundlich
Photos by Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Tansill Theater, Connecticut College 2008

By William Shakespeare
Directed by Eric Hill
Scenery and Lights by Tina Louise Jones
Photos by Gerry Goldstein, Sabrina Notarfrancisco

Connecticut Repertory Theater 2000

This production of Hamlet was set inside a monastery where Horatio, Hamlet’s only surviving friend, is living out the rest of his life as a monk. The action of the play is a product of his memory.

In addition to the play’s famous themes of madness, revenge, mortality, and religion, I also sought ways to incorporate the themes of contrast and transformation into my designs. I created contrast at the top of the show by costuming Hamlet completely in black to further alienate him from the courtiers who all wear bright jewel tones. After his return from England, I dressed Hamlet completely in white to contrast with the black mourning clothes at Ophelia’s funeral.

I created a sense of transformation by designing monk and nun costumes that could easily convert into soldier and lady-in-waiting looks. Additionally, the costumes worn by the principal characters were layered and easily removable. The outermost layers that referenced Elizabethan era silhouettes – partlets, shoulder crescents, etc. –  were gradually discarded revealing silhouettes that became darker and progressively more modern as the action unfolded.