Today I will be outlining my work in theatrical ageing. Theatrical ageing is an exaggerated way of making a perfumer look elderly to the extent that it could be seen from the back of an audience of theatre. This type of make up is not subtle and would not be suitable for film or television work.
Items you will commonly need:
- Black Stipple Sponges
- Fine Orange stipple sponges
- Supra Colour Palette
- Old Age Stipple (Always patch test)
- Barrier foam (to protect the skin)
- Hair spray (Kryolan is most cost effective)
If you are using grease based products, which I did, then moisturise the skin first.
To apply theatrical ageing:
- Tie all hair off the face
- Apply a light natural foundation base to the face including the lips, a shade lighter than you would normally go for
- Ask your model to hold facial expressions to reveal natural crease lines
- Whilst your model holds these faces, using a fine angled brush paint lines in to these creases using a mid brown or grey tone
- Gradually build these lines up
- Add some contouring to areas where the face naturally goes in i.e the cheekbones and around the eyes
- Using your thumb gently smudge these lines to give them more of a natural look
- Using your supra colour palette, mix a tiny amount of yellow in to white and brush through the eyebrows using a clean mascara wand.
Important note: white alone can often come out slightly blue on camera!
- using a mixture of red supra colour with a tiny amount of blue, stipple on to the cheeks lightly to give the impression of broken veins
- If you want to give the impression of decay, apply some coloured tooth enamel to the teeth using a baby bud. to remove, use a baby bud dipped in mentholated spirit to wipe away.
I am really pleased with my attempt at theatrical ageing, above. I feel like it actually looks quite convincing. However if this was intended for the theatre or a live performance, the effect would need to be further emphasised as people on the back rows would not be able to see as well and the effects would be lost. I think the eyebrows brushed with the white supra colour actually bring the whole looks together and finish it off very genuinely. I equally feel like I've mixed together a very natural tone of brown that suits my models complexion.
How to Crepe the skin
- Apply Barrier shield to the skin to protect the skin more sensitivity or staining
- Stretch the area of skin out so it appears super smooth and wrinkle free
- whilst stretched out, apply old age stipple using a sponge making sure to stipple it on to the skin to avoid any harsh lines
- Using a hairdryer on its cool setting, move the air over the area of skin constantly moving to avoid pooling the liquid
- Allow to completely dry
- Once dried, release the skin to reveal the bunching of the skin and the allusion of wrinkles
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