Costume design was not my career of choice. It was however
a sideline from the studies I was pursuing as a Fine Artist. During
the early 1960s, when an unfortunate accident stopped a dance career
with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, I returned to art college to begin
a lifelong study of the human form. It was during these early days
that I was caught up in the world of theatre. My talents were recognized
by several people in the theatre, who in their turn invited me to
participate.
In 1963 I was asked to be a member of the Neptune Theatre in Halifax
Nova Scotia, where I began my active career as a costume designer.
Some years later, it occurred to me that I should take a leave of
absence to study stage design more seriously since I was feeling
limited in my scope, and I wished to complement costume design with
scenic design. In 1967 I left Canada for The Wimbledon School of
Fine Art, Theatre Section, my choice after interviewing the faculty
at several schools in Europe and Britain.
While in England, I was asked by the Canadian Dept. of Indian
Affairs if I would research and design the clothes for their proposed
restoration of the domestic life at the Fortress of Louisbourg,
in Cape Breton. This magnificent ruin had been a very active French
colony in the early 18th century, having been built by Louis XIV
in 1719.
It was this non-theatrical venture that turned the corner of my
design career. Theatre design had been an exciting experience, but,
after two years of the study of Fine and Applied Arts and the research
for the Louisbourg project, I began to distance myself from theatre
and looked towards more diverse fields. It had become evident that
to earn a living as a designer, I had best be more creatively involved
in the Arts in general.
Louisbourg was to be my first teaching experience. It came about
from a chance series of lectures I presented at Louisbourg prior
to my departure for England. The Canadian Dept. of Indian Affairs,
now known as Parks Canada, asked me to speak about costuming their
proposed animation program at the site. My teaching style would
eventually be adapted from my own studies in England which I felt
was the best experience of my life to that point. Through this process
I involved myself in giving to the small staff of five people from
the modern town of Louisbourg all the information and experience
I had so that we might reproduce the necessary 18th-century domestic
and military clothing. A re-enactment of the 18th century was to
be created to introduce visitors to life in a French colony on the
rough Atlantic coastline.
The designs I created for the Louisbourg project are not in the
archives; most belong to Dr. Charles Armour. The others were given
as gifts.
I soon realized that giving away and selling my designs meant
that I would not have them at hand, and that they might simply be
destroyed over time. At the suggestion of Dr. Armour, the creator
of the Neptune Theatre holdings at the Dalhousie Archives, I began
to give the archives my sketches for which I received an appropriate
tax receipt. There is another smaller collection of my stage designs
at the Metropolitan Toronto Library, in their theatre section. Many
other designs have been lost over the years. Those from the Manitoba
Theatre Centre's production of Berthold Brecht's Mother Courage
starring Zoë Caldwell and directed by John Hirsch.. These same
costumes eventually went to the Théâtre du Nouveau
Monde in Montreal, for their production of the same play starring
Denise Pelletier. Most theatres are usually rather chaotic at maintaining
records of past productions. Designers are even more careless with
their designs once a production has passed into history.
Among the designs that are in the Dalhousie Archives are many
that are quite special since they represent the design activities
of over 33 years. Most notable among them are the designs I did
for Neptune Theatre, especially those after my study period in England
which I consider to be my best period, although there were many
interesting moments from the earlier period 1963 - 1967. Sketches
from this period have vanished into private collections.
Over the years I have designed the costumes for 429 productions.
Some productions required only six or so costumes, while others
required dozens. Then of course, the Nova Scotia International Tattoo,
for which I designed the sets and costumes for the first production
in 1979, attended by Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, and continued
designing for the next 25 years, with two periods of absence.
The most exciting element of the Tattoo was the military and civilian
nature of this extraordinary theatrical presentation. Unlike any
other Military Tattoo, this one, directed and produced by Col. Ian
S. Fraser, had all the elements of a major three ringed circus.
The glorious sound of massed bands, pipes and drums, and spectacular
lighting effects - with one of the largest lighting rigs used in
indoor events in the country. Projections on one of Canada's largest
rear projection screens (30' x 60') added another element to the
visual presentation, for which I did the art work for many of the
25 years.
The designs for these productions, often quite rough, show how extraordinary this theatrical event has been in the history of Nova Scotia. And how it has given a focus to the Scottish celebrations now held throughout the summer in Nova Scotia. The first Gathering of the Clans held outside Scotland was held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, celebrated at the Nova Scotia Tattoo. The pride I feel in being associated with the Tattoo for most of its history is enormous.
It was this experience with the Nova Scotia Tattoo, an ability
to think big, and not let scale ruffle me, which led to my appointment
as the Artistic Director of the Pan American Games, Opening and
Closing Ceremonies in Winnipeg. For this event I designed the sets
and hundreds of costumes, and had them produced in the garment factories
in Winnipeg. Because, as is always the case with short term theatrical
events, money and budgets are tight, therefore, for the Pan Am Games,
I used a special paper for most of the costumes, paper that cost
$2.40 per yard and would survive rain, should we get rained out,
which is customary for Winnipeg's summers. We used some 28,000 yards
of this paper. And for the many other costumes and costume pieces
I scoured the country for fabrics, shoes, masks, sequined fabrics,
stretch fabrics, and the most current athletic fabrics available
in order to realize my designs.
In 1997, after 26 years of teaching I began to feel I had taught my last class. Within the university, there had long been petty jealousies and political maneuvering that finally began to take its toll. I took early retirement and stopped teaching.
In the years following I concentrated on writing and publishing
Waisted Efforts, An Illustrated Guide to Corset Making, a
subject which I formed out of my designs at Louisbourg, and was
exclusive to Costume Studies. Laundry, The Whys and Hows of Cleaning
Clothes followed, a history of laundry and personal hygiene.
In the works are The Arts of the Tailor, in three volumes.
Each of these five books is based on the teaching experience at
Louisbourg, University of Regina and Dalhousie University. It should
be said here that, it was only at Dalhousie that I was given the
opportunity to put into shape this Costume Studies Program. As a
result of this program of studies, unique to North America, many
individuals are now working in professional theatre costume workshops.
There is an old French saying that goes..."Simplicity is not always
the best, but the best is always simple." This mantra has been mine
throughout my career, along with, "Style is not so much about where
you go, but how you get there." If therefore, there is to be an
epitaph to my career, it should be : "I wanted and expected only
the best, not perfection, because that is not always possible. The
best can be achieved."
Robert Doyle
March 30, 2002, Stratford, Ontario
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