‘Charlotte’s Web’ challenge: Dressing 4- and 8-legged creatures

Creating an animal, insect or rodent costume can be so tricky.

But leave it to Soojin Lee, the costume designer at South Coast Repertory, to evoke characters for the theater’s children’s production of E.B. White’s “Charlotte’s Web.”

The beloved classic in children’s literature takes the audience through the familiar tale of the pig who becomes a star with a little help from his friends. And it’s Lee’s designs, which include a snout, feathers, a rat’s tail and webbed feet, that reflect the personalities of the characters in the script.

For Lee, it’s a creative process that originated when she was a little girl in South Korea. Lee always enjoyed art, spending most of her childhood drawing. To follow her passion, she pursued fine arts and traveled to learn from different cultures. While attending Wimbledon College of Art in England and the California Institute of the Arts, or CalArts, in Valencia, she focused her studies on costume design.

As a professional costume designer, she has worked on Shakespearean and modern plays, musicals, films and dances, including “Eurydice” and Stephen Sondheim’s “Putting it Together.”

And now, “Charlotte’s Web.”

For two to three weeks, Lee read the script, researched concepts and began preliminary renderings. She spent time at home, coffee shops and libraries for inspiration. She had to be alone so she could delve inward.

After digesting the characters, she pored over books and magazines to gather more image samples. Then she began to draw.

“Sometimes, I know exactly what I’m drawing before I start to sketch, and other times, I kind of know at the start and it comes together along the way,” Lee said.

The next step was to share her initial drawings with director Laurie Woolery. Lee said she and Woolery had to ensure that they were on the same page for the final look. After making changes based on Woolery’s input, Lee watercolored the renderings for pre-final submission.

She has had challenges along the way.

Consider Charlotte A. Cavatica, or simply Charlotte, a spider who befriends a rambunctious pig named Wilbur.

The arachnid’s eight legs quickly became a design problem. Lee had to take into account the movements and safety of the actress portraying Charlotte as she moved around the stage.

Lee also had to ensure that the actors could slip into and out of the costumes easily. The play has many characters but only six actors, and the designs had to be modified from the original concept to accommodate the quick changes.

“Everyone has a different challenge,” said Amy Hutto, costume shop manager at the repertory. “But we always make it.”

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‘Snout needs to be firmer’

Downstairs in the theater company’s basement is a large room brimming with tape measures, needles and mannequins — undressed, partially dressed and fully dressed. Sewing machines hum as staffers sew together pieces of fabric.

On a Wednesday afternoon, Hutto and four other women who were working away on costumes glanced up at closed-circuit television screens. A technical rehearsal of “Charlotte’s Web” appeared. Actors, outfitted in Lee’s designs and Hutto and the staff’s makings, recited lines, moved on stage and listened to the production team’s cues.

Hutto said they were watching to make sure the costumes fit properly and that the actors could move easily in them. If not, a team member from the shop would need to run upstairs and assess what needed to be done.

For now, Hutto, who has been with the South Coast Repertory shop for 19 years, said she is focused on finessing looks and making sure zippers and magnets are working.

“We have the weirdest conversations about serious things,” Hutto said of the costume team. “We’ll say, ‘I think Wilbur’s snout needs to be firmer.’”

The two fussiest animals she had to replicate are the goose and gander.

“They’re the most elaborate,” Hutto explained. “They have ruffles, bonnets, beaks and feathers.”

To make Charlotte, Hutto attached eight foam lines to a backpack the actor carries. A costume is not built from scratch; Hutto said she and the wardrobe team either buy parts or pull pieces from stock. More than 100,000 hanging pieces, not including hats and shoes, are stored in the theater’s warehouse. Hutto found a corduroy jumpsuit for Wilbur among the variety of clothes.

She pointed to a rendering of a sheep. “We pulled that skirt and sweater from our stock,” she said.

The costume’s wool scarf was bought on eBay.

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One strand at a time

“Tonight, I will write ‘Terrific,’” said the barn spider as she began to weave the words on a web.

“Hold for a second!” a production crew member shouted from the back of the Julianne Argyros Stage.

The music stopped. Charlotte, played by Zilah Mendoza, rested her many legs. The projector screen showing the half-written word “Terrific” paused.

A technical rehearsal can take hours. Though tedious, it’s beneficial for all aspects of the production, since performers test the costumes and the production staff can see the costumes in their finished form for the first time.

“How are the trims on the legs feeling?” a voice asked Mendoza.

“They’re fine!” Mendoza called back.

The music played. Mendoza returned to spinning her hands in the air, then finished writing words in an imaginary web and went to sleep.

“That was perfect, Zilah,” said production manager Jackie Hill. “Just know when you’re falling asleep, the music will carry on.”

Once tech rehearsals are completed, there are a round of previews and then performances. Changes cannot be made once a performance begins its run for audiences. This is the reason adjustments must be made early in the rehearsal process.

South Coast Repertory expects to host more than 10,000 students during school day matinees for “Charlotte’s Web.” Meanwhile, Lee and Hutto already have been working on the costumes for the theater’s 35th anniversary of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.”

“A lot of times, it’s fun,” Hutto said. “The costumes are really wonderful.”

IF YOU GO

What: “Charlotte’s Web”

When: 7 p.m. Fridays, 11 a.m. and 2 and 4:30 p.m. Saturdays, and 2 and 4:30 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 23

Where: South Coast Repertory, Julianne Argyros Stage, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa

Cost: Tickets start at $24

Information: (714) 708-5555 or visit scr.org