Makeup Production

A delicate balance of artistic skill and tender touch, makeup production is one of the most intimate technical skills in the theatre. Makeup artists must be able to carefully apply stage makeup to an actor, considering health and safety as well as the overall look for the stage. This guide will provide an overview of the makeup artist's necessary skills, and the process of applying stage makeup to ensure the best artistic outcome.

Terminology

• Airbrushing: Process of applying liquid makeup using an air compressor, used for large areas and even coverage.
• Cake/Pancake Makeup: A compressed powdered makeup used as a foundation and applied with a damp sponge.
• Chiaroscuro: The use of highlight and shadow.
• Clown White: White cream makeup used in clown or mime makeup for full face coverage, used in stage makeup for highlighting or special effects.
• Contour: The makeup or process of emphasizing facial features, using a makeup shade darker than the foundation.
• Crepe Hair: Also called “crepe wool,” false hair made of wool or plant fibers, used to create artificial facial hair.
• Face Chart: A blueprint of the makeup design, often created with stage makeup on special paper.
• Foundation: Skin-colored makeup used to even or change skin tone. Special effects makeup might use an unnatural color for foundation.
• Greasepaint: An oil-based cream makeup used as a foundation or for special effects.
• Highlight: The makeup or process of emphasizing facial features, using a makeup shade lighter or brighter than the foundation.
• Liquid Latex: Adhesive material that can be used to create three-dimensional special effects, often used to create wounds, aging or peeling skin, or apply prosthetics.
• Pigment: Colored makeup in loose powder form; can also be mixed with a binder into a pressed powder form.
• Primer: A cream, gel, or liquid that is applied to the skin in order to prep it for makeup.
• Prosthetic: A material (sometimes called an appliance) that is attached to the skin in order to change the appearance of the actor.
• Rouge: A colored makeup used to redden the cheeks.
• Skin Test: A method of establishing how the skin will react to chemicals and ingredients in makeup, such as latex.
• Spirit Gum: A liquid adhesive used to attach prosthetics to the skin, including fake hair, facial appliances, etc.
• Stippling: An application technique using a special sponge to create special effects, including shading, facial hair, and aging.
• Straight Makeup: Sometimes called “street makeup,” used to camouflage imperfections and define facial features.