And Introducing....

The bright sparks or the show-offs, the performers, the stars.

Our cast is pretty varied, and I am not going to make a huge list and make you digest it all.
No.. I think it's far more entertaining to be given small tidbits of information, and allowed to then ruminate on the possibilities, perhaps do a little research on these gems of knowledge, and then come back for more with your apetite whetted.

The first character that we have created for  Monster, as we fondly term it,  is HUgo Monster.

HUgo is our favourite blue furry guy. He's big, but a little shy, full of fun and energy, and full of bounce and tricks!
This big handsome fellow is humble and hunky, the perfect combination to make him oh so loveable *sigh*

He likes to swing from trees, leap from walls and sweep you off your feet. Need I say more?
I think we all have a little bit of a crush on HUgo Monster at the moment.

HUgo is the first of the Monsters -who are of course the stars of this show. Our monster style is what I like to term "Baroque Asian Fusion." I have taken the overall shape and lines of a traditional Chinese Lion seen here on the right.
I have always loved the shape of the huge heads on the Chinese dancing Lions, but been a little frustrated too much fluff and spangle and not enough character.

I drew up HUgo's design using similar lines to the Lions, but tying to keep him feeling more approachable. Working with the direction of Cathy Tree Harris  as our Costume mentor, I sculpted HUgo's head from dense foam, and then we covered him in sparkly velvet, fur and glitter.
On the left you can see his face shape starting to take form. It looks a little weird because there is blue felt tip all over him where I have been working out the right lines.

I can tell you that carving foam is lots of fun but SUPER SUPER messy! It is really different and a challange for me because as a jeweller I am used to carving VERY small things... like this tiny bunny that I carved in wax and then cast in bronze... its is less than 3cm tall.


HUgo's head is pretty giant... he is the largest of our monsters. It's comfy though, and stays on well. His eyes were very fun to do, and important to get right. You can see below how the fabric wraps around his eyeball, and it works really nicely to form lovely wrinkles over the eyelids.

Once we had the basic form of his face, head and horns it was great to pin fur and fabric on to see how it changed the emphasis on certain features.

His dignified mustachios were an instant keeper!
The nose is black velvet, and the mustache is a grey fun fur.

The same fur works wonderfully as eyebrows, and you can start to see his character developing.
This is where it gets VERY exciting, and we start to move quickly on deciding what fabrics go where... and play with wool and glue and glitter and paint until 3am.