Costume, Makeup, Stagecraft and Performance Presentation
What the exam tests
This domain tests whether you can describe form-specific costume and makeup accurately and explain stagecraft choices in terms of tradition, movement, visibility and audience.
Core rules
- Bharatanatyam: female dancers usually wear a silk saree draped in fan or pyjama style with secure pleats, temple jewellery, head ornaments, gajje ankle bells and alta on the feet; makeup defines eyes and lips for visibility.
- Kathak: female costume often includes churidar, angarkha and dupatta; male costume includes dhoti or churidar, kurta, angarkha and pagdi; ghunghroo are essential.
- Kathakali: pacha (green) makeup for noble characters, chutti white ridge, red for raudra types, and large headgear; costume is codified by character type.
- Odissi: patta saree, tahia headpiece and silver jewellery; Manipuri: kumil and potloi for Ras Lila; Mohiniyattam: white and gold kasavu-style costume.
- Stagecraft: proscenium stage geography (upstage, downstage, wings), lighting, sound, green room, quick changes, sightlines and entrance cues.
Worked example
Plan costume for a Bharatanatyam varnam. Choose a fan-style silk saree with firmly stitched pleats, gajje, temple jewellery and clear makeup. Reason: the varnam demands both nritta and abhinaya, so the costume must allow aramandi, jumps and sitting positions without loosening; jewellery must be secure for spins; makeup must read under stage lighting. The choice is functional and traditional, not merely decorative.
Traps that cost marks
Mixing Kathakali green makeup with Bharatanatyam; treating jewellery as ornament only; ignoring ankle bells; forgetting that costume affects movement; describing stagecraft without audience sightlines.