The Bacchae

The Bacchae is a Greek tragedy where the King of Thebes and his family fall into madness because they are being punished by the god Dionysus for slandering his mother. To highlight the character’s transformation, I chose to use costumes inspired by the 1800s Victorian Era because the clothing style of that period was restrictive and rigid. Throughout the course of the play, as the women begin to lose their own sense of propriety and as they are seduced by the freedom of Dionysus, their formal, rich clothing begins to break down and eventually the characters’ minds and their clothing are both left in tatters to highlight the juxtaposition of their characters at the beginning and end of the play.

The costume of King Penthus was patterned after Kings of the 1800s and given a military styling to indicate that he will be battling against the Bacchae. The men of the play do not give in to the lure and ecstasy of the Bacchae, so their costumes remain primarily in the style of military uniforms. 

For the women who do begin to fall under the spell of the Bacchae, their costumes begin to break down and lose pieces, but each time a piece is taken away, they receive a cult symbol as a replacement. The primary identifiers I used for the cult were golden deer and fawn masks because they are symbols of Dionysus and I also wanted to pay homage to the original theatrical performances of Greek tragedies that would have incorporated masks. Other cult symbols are metal work accent pieces–either corsets, belts, or neck pieces–to maintain the rigid shapes of the Victorian time period. 

I also used the golden mask motif for Dionysus himself while he was in his priest form, but I chose to use a panther rather than a deer so that he would stand out. I used a traditional Greek inspiration for his demigod look using grand fabrics and embellishments to elevate the simplicity of the garment’s structure.

Renderings: Procreate, Watercolor, Pen, Colored Pencil, Gold Leaf, Gemstones