Costume, Hair & Makeup Director

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DEPARTMENT: Production

POSITION: Costume, Hair & Makeup Director

REPORTS TO: Director of Production & Operations

JOB TYPE: Full Time, Exempt

START DATE: Summer/Fall 2022

SALARY RANGE: $62,000 to 65,000

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Negotiable

BENEFITS:  

• Five Health plan options with employer contribution, vision and dental coverage with no employee cost.

• Retirement plan with employer match after first year of service.

• Two weeks paid vacation in first year. Additional weeks granted with tenure.

• Eight sick days and two personal days per year.

• Eight paid holidays.

• Four complimentary tickets to each show.

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Position Summary

The Costume, Hair & Makeup Director serves in a leadership position to advance the Theater’s mission, working in collaboration with the Director of Production. The Costume, Hair & Makeup Director is directly responsible to lead, guide and facilitate communication between designers, directors, stage managers, and costume and wardrobe staff to advance productions, plan and implement designs, and provide the equipment necessary to tech and run shows within budget parameters in a safe, efficient, and respectful manner. The Costume, Hair & Makeup Director is responsible for departmental budgeting and scheduling, interfacing with designers and PPT leadership, hiring costume and wardrobe staff and over-hires, filing union reports, communicating with landlords on matters relating to costumes and wardrobe, and overseeing the execution of costume, wardrobe, and hair and makeup work within financial and deadline specifications. The Costume, Hair & Makeup Director provides a knowledge of costume aesthetics and proper fit, a comprehension of period styles, and oversees that all materials are on hand for use to ensure timely builds and daily operations. The Costume, Hair & Makeup Director directs the department in culturally-appropriate, well-researched costume, make up, and hair design through collaboration with both artists and staff, modeling equity and artistic excellence in both process and execution.

 

Essential Duties

• To acknowledge, understand, and demonstrate a commitment to the Theater’s racial justice efforts by applying anti-racist tools and practices to individual and departmental processes and systems, and to contribute to a work environment that encourages knowledge of, respect for, and engagement with persons of all cultures, identities, and backgrounds (for more information see www.ppt.org/racialjustice).

• To model and practice the values of artistic excellence, joyful collaboration, and resolute respect—especially when faced with challenges—through constructive, clear, solution-focused communication with fellow staff, supervisors, guest artists, and any other individual involved in the work at hand

• To demonstrate inclusive behavior and cultivate the same in all costume, wardrobe, and hair and makeup employees, and to apply an inclusive, equitable, and culturally sensitive lens to departmental decisions

• To maintain confidentiality and discretion for all costume and wardrobe operations with sensitivity to intimacy and personal considerations

• To support the cultural diversity and unique identities of PPT artists by anticipating and providing for specific costume, hair and makeup necessities during design, build, and tech processes, including providing the appropriate supplies, appliances, and products (irons, curlers, dryers, brushes, lotions, etc.) for artists, according to their physical and cultural needs

• To possess a thorough understanding of the costume design and construction processes and all the related aspects of the overall theater production process

• To possess knowledge of cutting, draping and patterning as well as knowledge of textiles, crafting materials and costume history to incorporate the best theatrical practices with regards to construction, stitching, sewing and crafting

• To administer costume and wardrobe budgets by approving expenditures, tracking expenses, and regularly reporting financial activity and forecasts to the Director of Production & Operations. Additionally, to take action within the appropriate scope of responsibility to close budget shortfalls when needed to stay on budget, report spending revisions, and make recommendations to the Director of Production & Operations for improved efficiencies.

• To participate in planning the season schedule for costume, wardrobe, and hair and makeup design deadlines and designer residency dates, as well as build calendars and work schedules.

• To hire, supervise, evaluate and direct costume, wardrobe, and hair and makeup staff, including overhires, with an eye toward developing a motivated and collaborative team that is dedicated to producing high-quality work.

• To oversee the coordination of work between costume, wardrobe, and hair and makeup areas during show builds, load-ins, rehearsals, and performance runs, and schedule interdepartmental meetings as needed.

• To interface with the Show Director, Costume Designer, Costume Shop Manager and Wardrobe Manager effectively to ensure that the costume design and hair and makeup treatments are achieved on time and on budget.

• To provide inventory control for the Theater’s costume stock and to oversee costume and equipment rentals and loans to third parties.​

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Skills and Qualifications

• Five years of experience in professional costume work, including one year of supervisory experience.

• Thorough knowledge of all areas of theatrical costuming, including theatrical production calendar.

• A keen sense of costume aesthetics and an understanding of proper fit.

• Working knowledge of costume materials, and costume and fashion history, including garment manufacturing.

• Able to manage in a fast-paced environment in which priorities can change rapidly, while maintaining a spirit of creative thinking and problem solving.

• Demonstrated ability to work within budget and deadline parameters.

• Knowledge of safety standards for costume shops.

• The ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing.

• Thorough knowledge of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook).

• Proficiency using cloud-based information sharing systems.

• Must have effective organizational, time management, and decision-making skills.

• Must be able to demonstrate inclusive behavior, ability to communicate about body types, hair types, skin tones, and genders with neutral/positive language.

• Confidentiality and discretion are required.

• Knowledge of IATSE collective bargaining agreements, and the ability to work in collegial partnership with union and non-union employees.

• Commitment to the values of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and the ability to manage with these values centered.

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About Pittsburgh Public Theater

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Under the leadership of Marya Sea Kaminski, Artistic Director and Lou Castelli, Managing Director, The Public typically produces a six-play season and provides educational and engagement programming to the community, serving roughly 65,000-70,000 people annually.

 

We believe that great theater is critical to a healthy, vibrant city. Stories are a powerful tool to connect us to one another, and theater provides a place for us to share in a collective story - where we can breathe, laugh, and imagine together. Artistic excellence, integrity, and sincere welcome are our trademarks at the Pittsburgh Public Theater. These values serve as the bedrock for our commitment to equitable representation and just practices in all areas of our work. We produce plays at the highest level of theatrical production, aiming for excellence and equity in both our productions and our processes.

 

As we move forward, we are devoted to welcoming more of Pittsburgh into Pittsburgh Public. We will produce works manifold in form, content, and perspective. In any given season, an audience member can experience a Shakespearean epic, an exuberant musical, or a gritty new work on our stage. We live in a world where there are many reasons for us to feel divided. By honoring a wide array of theatrical experiences and perspectives, the Public aims to acknowledge and transcend the definitions that polarize us and to provide a place where the entire region feels welcome to gather, swap stories, and spend time. We aim to become a vibrant bustling artistic center by throwing our doors open both locally and nationally, inspiring great artists to meet alongside our neighbors to laugh, contemplate, and create together.

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Mission

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Our mission at Pittsburgh Public Theater calls us to provide artistically diverse theatrical experiences of the highest quality, created in a fiscally responsible manner that shares our resources with our wider community. Since our founding in 1974, our staff, artists, and Board of Trustees have established a strong legacy of excellence and integrity and in the coming seasons, we will build on that legacy by creating extraordinary theater events that deepen our connection and strengthen our relevance to our region.

 

We believe that a theater experience should always be more than a transaction with an audience, but should be an opportunity to forge a personal connection that seeds a vital relationship over time. Our vision moving forward is to cultivate these connections by engaging the incredible communities that populate Pittsburgh, not only as audiences but as partners. We hope to provide artistic experiences that resonate with the people of our city, that create a platform for compelling conversations, civic connection, and authentic celebrations of the many wonderful organizations and neighborhoods that create the social fabric of this region. Artistically, we aim for Pittsburgh Public Theater to serve as a center for robust intersections; a place where we ignite the power of stories to create strong bonds between neighbors and transform strangers into friends.

 

One of the most powerful ways we contribute to our wider community is through our Education initiatives. For over twenty-five years, Pittsburgh Public has served the young people of our region and their families through our acclaimed Education programs, Creative Dramatics and our Shakespeare Monologue Competition. There is no greater investment we can make in our future than inviting young people to use their imaginations and their voices to begin to realize their own artistic power.

 

Through our collective commitment and the vital talents of our staff, artists, and Board of Trustees, we will serve audiences with exceptional theatrical experiences, cultivate authentic and long-term partnerships with communities across Pittsburgh, and invest in both national and local artists who delight and connect us during this unique moment in history. By telling great stories with good people in extraordinary ways, we aim to fulfill our namesake and to truly become Pittsburgh’s Public Theater.

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Anti-Racism Statement and Action Steps

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In response to the powerful call to action and generous insights offered by the Black, Indigenous, and artists of color from our regional and national communities, especially the artists who have organized to create We See You White American Theatre and Black Theatre United, Pittsburgh Public Theater took a hard look at our own internal practices to identify and initiate steps to achieve greater racial equity and just representation throughout our organization.

 

This internal analysis was carried out through the creation of staff work groups who identified twelve concrete racial justice commitments. Action plans for each of these commitments were developed and executed in 2020-2021 as part of Phase One of our EDIA (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility) efforts.

 

At the same time, we launched a Racial Justice Task Force composed of Board members, artists of color, and community leaders to steer us in our year-long process to create meaningful improvements across our operations. This task force evolved into the Racial Justice Committee of our Board with representation at the Executive level, and the newly-formed Committee developed additional commitments for the second phase of our work over the next few years.

 

Phase Two of our work began in December 2021. The staff has been reorganized into four work groups, representing the following areas: Collaborations and Civic Partnerships, Training and Research, Vendors and Hiring Practices, and Accountability. These groups will continue to carry out the work begun in Phase One (centered primarily on racial justice) and will also oversee the progress of our Phase Two commitments (which we hope to grow to better incorporate inclusion and accessibility).

 

We have recently hired a Talent and Equity Director and an Equity Coordinator to steer this work.

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Covid Safety Policy

 

All staff must be fully-vaccinated against COVID-19 (as defined by the CDC) to the extent permitted by law. When levels of community transmission are high, masks must be worn in all theater facilities, and employees may be asked to test for COVID-19 if exposure is a concern. The Theater’s protocols are updated monthly to align with the most current CDC recommendations.