In addition to the use of makeup, I realised that my use of costume would be of key importance within my performance in order to evoke the joyful, light-hearted spirit of my piece. Therefore, I decided that the use of a white onesie with black skulls, band shirts and a plain white t-shirt would be an interesting way of not only demonstrating my physical love for the genre of heavy metal, but also of signposting the various sections of my piece. Here are some photographs of the clothes that I will be wearing within my performance:

In terms of chronological order, the black and white onesie will be the first piece of costume that the audience will see me in as they come into the space. Whilst in the onesie, I will be performing a movement sequence and directly addressing the audience for the first time. One of the main reasons that I chose this onesie as the top layer for the four layers that I will be wearing is because it serves to keep all of the layers underneath it hidden very well whilst still being loose enough to move around in. Also, this onesie served as a sort of comforter for me when I was younger. Wearing this item of clothing made me feel safe and secure, just as heavy metal music provided a safe haven for me when I was a teenager. This element of comfort seemed important to include within the piece as I wanted this performance to fully encapsulate what made me happy as a teenager and how these various comforters served to make me a stronger individual in the long-term.

Immediately underneath the onesie, there will be an Iron Maiden t-shirt which shall be revealed once the onesie is removed. I decided to invest in this new shirt due to the recent inclusion of a section from my childhood. As I shall be sharing in my piece, my father was a key influence in terms of getting me interested in heavy metal. When I was a child, he would do the washing up to a compilation of Iron Maiden’s best-known songs, and when he was finished, I would run into the kitchen and we would dance together, screaming the lyrics and making the walls shake with the thudding bass from the kitchen stereo. Therefore, within the show, I shall be using a drum-kit made of pots and pans in order to drum along to the music of Iron Maiden. By using this shirt, I wish to evoke one of the first memories of me getting into heavy metal by remembering how it gave me so much joy.

Underneath the Iron Maiden shirt, there will be an Asking Alexandria band t-shirt which shall be unveiled after the end of the Iron Maiden section. I have owned this particular shirt for approximately five or six years as it holds sentimental value. In this shirt, I shall be giving a presentation on some of my favourite bands as well as recreating a concert that I attended when I was younger. By using this particular shirt, it is my intention to showcase my own growing love of the genre from when I was a teenager. This passion included stepping away from my father and the influence that he had over my taste in music. As I entered adolescence, I became less reliant on having to borrow my father’s CD’s and instead, I began to buy various albums for myself using my own money. I would also ask specifically for certain albums as birthday and Christmas presents, as I went on to find new bands of my own accord.

Finally, the plain white t-shirt which shall be unveiled at the end of the piece serves to embody how just because I do not dress in an extreme manner or talk overtly of my love of heavy metal today, this does not mean that I love the genre any less. As a teenager, my passion for heavy metal taught me many valuable lessons on self-love, respect, compassion and confidence that I may not have acquired otherwise. By actively stepping away from the extreme appearance that I shall be using earlier on in the piece, I wish to emphasise how having gone to these previous extremes, I have learnt valuable lessons from these experiences that will stay with me forever, regardless of how I appear to the outside world.