Costume Designer Spotlight | Yao Chen

When did you decide to become a costume designer?

I started to dream about becoming a costume designer when I was around 10 years old. I viewed many wonderful films and I was impressed by the intricate design of the costumes in them. Then, I started to pick up the pen to draw images and design characters using my own imagination and stories.

About how long did it take you to envision and flesh out the costumes for Diary of A Worm, A Spider, and A Fly? Where did you go for inspiration?

It was great that I got the director’s vision in the first production meeting. We are not going for cartoon-style animal suits. We wanted to create a world that mimics children’s school. That meeting gave me a great direction for creating a blended visual bridge between the insect world and the real world.

Spider molting his skin must have presented an interesting challenge. How did you visualize this particular costume change?

It was quite an interesting conversation with the production team about how we can make this molting happen on stage. The final decision is that Spider would dress as a child with a spider-like pattern and texture in the first place. Then he would take off the garments piece by piece. A more colorful garment choice would be underneath and the audience would see the change from a dull and organic colored spider into a vivid and mature spider.

Is there anything, in particular, you would like to say about your designing process or the play?

I am excited to bring out the vivid color palette of the costume pieces. I am also excited to reveal the organic texture and some dusty effect of the costumes, especially for Worm.

Do you have any advice for kids coming to see the show?

I hope that kids will come away from the show having feelings like, “Oh, they are insects, but most important, they are our peers. We share the same school environments, same emotions, same courses, and social lives.” Also, I hope my costumes will spark children’s imaginations, since we are using a more abstract style to bring out the characters’ identities. I am looking forward to the moment when the kids discover, “Oh, she is a pilot and also a fly, right?” I hope my designs can bring out the humanity of the insect world and make an impression on the children in the audience.