 |  |
My Doha Experience
Thanks to Costume Supervisor and Designer Janet Hine and David Atkins Enterprises, I was employed as the Make-up Supervisor for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2006 Asian Games - Doha.
This role allowed me to really test my skills as an artist, an organiser and leader.
Not known to many of us here in Australia, the Asian Games have been held every four years since 1951. The 2006 Asian Games in Doha saw forty five countries participate.
The Opening and Closing ceremonies were groundbreaking events given that the number of costumes involved outnumbered anything ever attempted in a live show before.
The make-up requirements were to look after only featured peformers but for me that still meant catering for a combined total in both ceremonies of over one thousond people.
Given the cultural scope of the region, the make-up designs ranged from China's Peking Opera to Japan's Geisha and India's Kathakali to name only a few. It was important to me to honour the traditional look of these make-ups which meant that research formed a large part of my pre-production period.
Following this was an intense period of breaking down and testing the designs to make sure all the colours were correct and the product durable. Given the limited amount of materials available in Doha everything had to be bought in Australia and shipped overseas. I did not have the luxury of knowing I could get what I needed in Doha so absolutely everything had to be thought of, and factored for, in enough quantities to last the rehearsal period and the ceremonies.
Once in Doha, my wonderful and brave team of seven Aussie make-up artists set to work to learn the designs and teach them to 20 'locals' from Doha, India and Lebanon, many with limited knowledge of make-up and English vocabulary!
Leading this team of make-up artists into an event of this magnitude was incredibly daunting and a huge responsibility but I loved the challenge of it and the outcome was immensly rewarding. The pride I felt at what we were all able to accomplish under sometimes trying circumstances was overwhelming.
Thanks to Costume Supervisor and Designer Janet Hine and David Atkins Enterprises, I was employed as the Make-up Supervisor for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2006 Asian Games - Doha.
This role allowed me to really test my skills as an artist, an organiser and leader.
Not known to many of us here in Australia, the Asian Games have been held every four years since 1951. The 2006 Asian Games in Doha saw forty five countries participate.
The Opening and Closing ceremonies were groundbreaking events given that the number of costumes involved outnumbered anything ever attempted in a live show before.
The make-up requirements were to look after only featured peformers but for me that still meant catering for a combined total in both ceremonies of over one thousond people.
Given the cultural scope of the region, the make-up designs ranged from China's Peking Opera to Japan's Geisha and India's Kathakali to name only a few. It was important to me to honour the traditional look of these make-ups which meant that research formed a large part of my pre-production period.
Following this was an intense period of breaking down and testing the designs to make sure all the colours were correct and the product durable. Given the limited amount of materials available in Doha everything had to be bought in Australia and shipped overseas. I did not have the luxury of knowing I could get what I needed in Doha so absolutely everything had to be thought of, and factored for, in enough quantities to last the rehearsal period and the ceremonies.
Once in Doha, my wonderful and brave team of seven Aussie make-up artists set to work to learn the designs and teach them to 20 'locals' from Doha, India and Lebanon, many with limited knowledge of make-up and English vocabulary!
Leading this team of make-up artists into an event of this magnitude was incredibly daunting and a huge responsibility but I loved the challenge of it and the outcome was immensly rewarding. The pride I felt at what we were all able to accomplish under sometimes trying circumstances was overwhelming.