Since 1939, onscreen witch attire has taken its cues from the Wicked Witch of the West’s all-black aesthetic in “The Wizard of Oz,” designed by legendary old-Hollywood costumer Adrian. Nearly 90 years later, “Wicked” costume designer Paul Tazewell set a younger version of the character on a sartorial journey that culminates in a reinterpretation of that iconic look.
Tazewell worked his magic to create around 25 costumes apiece for Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) and Galinda (Ariana Grande) across Jon M. Chu’s film and its sequel, which hits theaters in November. “That is where I expand and soar in my work, because I bring ideas of character that are grounded in real emotion but resonate in a much more expansive way,” Tazewell says.
Here, the Emmy and Tony winner discusses his Ozian roots, bringing actors into the costuming process, and building pieces that defy gravity.
Paul Tazewell headshot by Brian Isom
You’ve been designing costumes for the world of Oz since you were 16—first for your high school production of “The Wizard of Oz,” then for NBC’s “The Wiz Live!” in 2015. What is it about this universe that grabs you?
Speaking to “Wicked,” specifically, it’s a fantasy world that is completely created. Oz could be anything. I think that’s why every time I’ve been faced with creating a version of it, it opens up my brain, in a way. It’s always informed by how the director imagines the world and the story being presented. What’s beautiful about “Wicked” is that it resonates on so many different levels: one is of fantasy and adventure, and the other is this very heartfelt story between these two beautiful women and how they grapple with their differences, which [is grounded in] very real emotions.
Cynthia Erivo on Her Whirlwind 'Wicked' Audition + Why Jonathan Bailey Can Have Chemistry With Anyone Was it intimidating to work in the world of “The Wizard of Oz,” especially since Adrian created such textured, colorful looks in the original film?
Yes, it’s intimidating. These design greats who have come before me have made their mark on that story. But I also had to put that aside and know and trust that I have the creative eye and mind to be able to create a world that will resonate in a very similar fashion, set a tone, and create iconic images that will carry forward from now on. That’s exciting.
You have to, as a creative person, be able to quiet those questions of whether you’re up to the task. I know that I’m up to the task. I focused on making the most magical world I could think of. I tapped into those places that resonate with me and how I see and imagine fantasy. I rely on that intuitively—how I connect to something—and imagine that somebody else will connect to it in the same fashion.
Credit: Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures
You posted a picture on Instagram of a warehouse full of costume racks stretching as far as the eye can see. Were all those pieces built in-house, or were some of them rentals?
We had days of [working with] more than 400–500 background players. When faced with managing and designing the world of Emerald City, we rented pieces from as many companies as we could—green items of all different periods and all different types so we could find shapes that seemed to work within our world.
If there’s any period I was leaning into, it was the 1910s, because it’s this transitional period from when the L. Frank Baum book was written at the turn of the century and then moving into our modern sensibility. “Wicked” seemed to fit comfortably within that world, because when you think about the shapes [from that era], they’re very interesting and creative. They’re unlike any other combination of silhouettes you saw before or after.
We pulled some of those silhouettes from rental houses and completely refashioned them and made them more asymmetrical. Much of it was about refitting and pulling them in slightly; changing the orientation of the buttons might give us more of an asymmetric look. In a way, we were molding the costumes like clay so that they could fit into this world that we were creating, because everything needed to feel as original as possible.
How the ‘Wicked’ Ensemble Defied Gravity & Earned That SAG Nomination We immediately learn about the characters from the way they style their Shiz University uniforms. Was it important to you to establish their personalities through costume?
Indeed. I think that’s a huge theme of this story overall. I wanted to engage the audience and really draw them in. Creating the world of Shiz was about how young people evolve and set a tone for who they are. That’s what Elphaba and Galinda are doing, and their dorm room becomes a microcosm of that. For the people surrounding them at Shiz, I thought it was very important to show their [individual] qualities.
Since it’s a university in a fantasy world, it can be gender-inclusive. There can be differences in hems because that’s what feels great for the person who’s wearing it—the way that jackets are cut apart or where the waistcoat hangs out from underneath. It’s setting up this asymmetrical world that allows for other styles because it’s turning our conception of what a uniform is on its head.
Credit: Lara Cornell/Universal Pictures
How many fittings did you have with Ariana and Cynthia across the production?
We were fitting them constantly. Once we got into our filming schedule, we had to grab them every time we could because of the quantity of clothing. I love the world of costumes. Part of that process is the intimacy of being in the fitting room with the actor as they’re imagining how they will look as that character. We’re both intent on [bringing] a character to life in front of our eyes, [so it’s important for me to understand] what the actor’s intention is and how what I’m doing with the design can bring to life what they have in their head.
It can be vulnerable sometimes, whether it’s an actor facing how they see themselves or thinking about the emotions of the character in these different looks. I hope to enter into that process in a sensitive way so that I can do my best work and acknowledge and hear what is going on for them. It’s intense, but it’s also a very joyful process.
Alongside that, we’ve got the maker of the costume for every fitting as well, and engaging with them—the tailor, the hatmaker, the shoemakers—is very fulfilling. Bringing those people in is additive to this whole process of creating the characters, and it’s really exciting.
What do you take into account when designing costumes for highly physical scenes, such as when Cynthia used a harness to perform “Defying Gravity” while flying on a broomstick?
Both Ariana and Cynthia were corseted to arrive at the silhouettes that we have for all their looks throughout the two films. Sometimes it was for support, and sometimes it was about the look and how it helped to support the clothing on their body. With Cynthia, she insisted on doing as much of the flying and high-active stunt work as she was allowed to. It was a process of asking, “Can you do what you need to do?” I’m very used to asking that question and understanding how I can adjust the costume so there’s not going to be a problem once we get to set. It’s important to work that out in the fitting room.
Figuring out: This is where your corset will live and marking what that’s going to be so that it always gets laced to the exact same place. Then with the harness on top of that—where that needs to sit on her body so that it has the right pick points [the loops around the harness that cables are attached to]. There are multiple harnesses for the different actions that she needs to do throughout the two films.
We have the head of stunts that comes into the fitting, as well, in order to be the authority on how that needs to live on Cynthia’s body and making sure that it’s always going to be a safe unit. Then we add all the costume pieces on top of that and make sure that we are still seeing as close to the same silhouette as we would when she doesn’t have the harness on.
Courtesy Paul Tazewell
You’ve been a costume designer on Broadway for nearly 30 years, on shows ranging from “The Color Purple” to “Hamilton” to “Death Becomes Her”; you’ve also worked on films, including 2021’s “West Side Story.” What are the major differences between creating costumes for stage and screen?
Thankfully, my sensibility tends towards the detail-oriented. If you see something that I’ve done for the stage, you’ll realize that I still put in the same amount of care. I love clothing-making, and I do whatever it takes to have the clothing look like it’s something you would see in a period magazine or film, or at the V&A or the Met. I want to recreate clothing in the way that it would be created, and I want it to be specific to a character and what that character requires as far as storytelling.
If it’s a musical, it needs to live within the genre of musicals. So that might be about color, how it moves through space, and having it be danceable. All those things [I’d do] for a Broadway show are still in operation when I’m looking at the world of film. Two of the films I’m known for, “West Side Story” and “Wicked,” are musicals. But right now, I’m working on a contemporary film [featuring] 2024 streetwear.
As designers, we can imagine many things. It’s about being accurate to the storytelling. I’m thinking about “Death Becomes Her,” which, even within the world of musicals, is a completely different take that’s very broad. It’s very camp. It’s a lot of fun. There are some beautiful dresses that are sparkly and very showy. I don’t think that kind of sensibility would necessarily work throughout a film I might design; but there might be elements I could carry over if I needed something to look very camp or very over-the-top. I’m always thinking, OK, so what is the genre of what I’m being asked to design? How can I make that the most exciting experience for an audience, and how do I bring my own individual sensibility to that design?
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
This story originally appeared in the Jan. 23 issue of Backstage Magazine.
