Costumes for Musical: A Cinderella Story

Costumes for Musical: A Cinderella Story

14 February 2026Lila C, Hope ‘26

Costumes are powerful tools in the art of storytelling. In a fairy-tale musical, like Cinderella, that is built upon transformation, class differences, and love, costumes convey a deep meaning in these integral parts of the story. Brentwood’s costume wizards, Ms Thelma Grobbelaar and Ms Wanda Chow Lindberg, have devoted their utmost energy, effort, and, most importantly, time into designing and bringing these intricate works to life.

These dreamy costumes help talented actors turn our Killy Theatre into a magical kingdom while making student actors feel confident and ready to shine in their roles. The long process began with researching classic fairy-tale silhouettes and combining this with making the designs look “stage-ready”, so actors can showcase their costumes beautifully from a distance. The principal costumes were designed to do more than tell a story. They also convey the growth and change that takes place throughout the musical; for example, Ella’s costumes range from her life as a servant to her future as a princess. Beading and other embellishments were added strategically to make sure to keep costumes lightweight and, most of all, beautiful. Many of these embellishments were hand-placed, exhibiting a devotion of time and effort within these dresses. Functionality in the costumes is needed to ensure an undisturbed performance; skirts and layers were carefully placed to make sure that they complement the actors’ performances. “Working with actors, not against them”, Ms Grobbelaar said.

For the most integral parts of the show, Cinderella’s transformation and her second ball gown involved hours of research, including studying past Cinderella performances, historical ball gown silhouettes, and many tests of how fabrics perform under harsh stage lighting. Cinderella’s transformation gown is made to be dramatic and show the impact of her life story while still being made to move freely and confidently. Fairy Godmother, Ashley M, Alex ‘26 stated, “I feel like my costume accurately represents the enchanting qualities my character holds.” The team used shimmer fabrics and delicately placed embellishments to still give that “wow” factor, while being sensible for the actress. With the use of flowy fabrics and light-reflective details, the Fairy Godmother’s transformation gown reflected the magic of the role. Ms Grobbelaar added, “We were able to bring forward dresses from previous Brentwood productions, passing the torch from alum in both Sally’s designs and graduated theatre students.” Ms Widenmaier, Director of Arts, said “This is the first time in over four years that Brentwood has done a costume show like this.”

This costume process was a team effort, with it being highly collaborative among the whole laundry team. There was much trial and error with creating these works of art, with creating designs, sourcing materials, altering, and, of course, problem-solving. From Hospitality Services, a big thanks to Linda and Astrid, who washed and prepped the dresses. Thanks to Wanda, Tara, Kylie, Tace, and Thelma who designed and added embellishments and Wanda, Holly, Willow, and Thelma who sourced specialty items and fabrics.

And again, the biggest thanks to the great Ms Thelma Grobbelaar, who made every performer feel special the moment they stepped on the stage through her diligent and genius thought processes. This labour of love has helped transform this musical into magic and wonder.

Lila C, Hope ‘26

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