Tony-winning designer Ann Hould-Ward has created some of Broadway’s most beautiful and recognizable costumes; the most notable of her 19 Broadway credits are the original productions of Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, A Free Man of Color, Dance of the Vampires and Beauty and the Beast (1994 Tony Award).
And with the Broadway-bound revival of Can-Can at the Paper Mill Playhouse, Ann Hould-Ward has outdone herself. BroadwayBox recruited the help of the musical’s luminous star Kate Baldwin (whose Hould-Ward gowns are to die for!) to give us a closer look at these crafted Parisian frocks, all of which are on display in these stunning Justin Patterson photos.
1. The Ladies of the Bal du Paradis
Here is Ann Hould-Ward's genius at work. Every girl has a different chemise, bodice and skirt which look thrown together, as though she just woke up (ahem!) But to see them side-by-side or swirling through the Quadrille, the costumes tell a story together. Megan Sikora as Claudine is sweet, modest and not yet a part of the dancers' world. Kate Baldwin as PIstache wears a green and black lace dressing gown, perhaps foreshadowing Aristide's absinthe dream in Act 2.
2. Kate Baldwin as Pistache and Jason Danieley as Aristide
The couple who fights for their rights: she for the worship of pleasure, he for adherence to morals. Will they work it out? Their clothes say they will....
3. Kate Baldwin as Pistache
This is the gown for "I Love Paris," the song in which Pistache realizes she's in love and must embrace it. It's her happiest dress and quintessentially French. A dream come true from Ann Hould-Ward.
4. Greg Hildreth as Boris and Megan Sikora as Claudine
The jaunty artist and his adoring lady-love. He is proud and ambitious, while she starts off as demure, but harbors ambitions of her own.
5. Jason Danieley as Aristide Forestier
Here is the Judge in and out of his workaday robes. He is a man of facts, principles and conflicting desires. But underneath his rigid Judge's exterior, he has the capacity to fight for what he believes in.
6. The Men of the Bal du Paradis
They serve drinks, flip girls, tumble and DANCE. Pistache loves her waiters and tips them generously. They deserve a smoke break.
7. Megan Sikora as Claudine and Michael Berresse as Hilaire Jussac
This shot is of the sexy tango Hilaire employs to seduce Claudine into giving him a chance. Claudine's Can-Can skirt rips away in a feat of costume magic, allowing her to dance with him before being discovered.
8. Justin Robertson as Etienne (the painter), Greg Hildreth as Boris (the sculptor) , Mark Price as Hercule (the poet)
The three artists who patronize the Bal du Paradis, which is loosely modeled on the Moulin Rouge. Their costumes convey the state of their paltry purses and also the fun they have as society's commentators.
9. Kate Baldwin as La Mome Pistache
This midnight blue gown is emblematic of Pistache's taste for drama. It's her chanteuse moment within the Bal du Paradis, singing "Allez Vous En," which becomes a realization of how much her love for Aristide still exists.
See these gorgeous costumes live in the pre-Broadway production of ‘Can-Can’ at the Paper Mill Playhouse through October 26.
