Noelle knew from an early age what she wanted to be. She had visions of costumes dancing in her head. This woman is charge of CLU’s theatre department of hair & makeup and costumes. Without her, everyone would be naked on stage.
Her Campus: What is your role within the theatre department?
Noelle Raffy: I am assistant professor of theatre. I am in charge of costume design and hair & makeup and I design for most shows. I run the costume shop and I’ve participated in any theatre event on campus.
HC: What inspired you to become a costume designer and makeup artist?
NR: Oh gosh. Dress-up. I used to go in my grandmother’s closet. She had great vintage scarves and she would put a bunch of old clothes in a trunk for me to dress-up. I would perform for my parents and the most important part was the costume. Also, since my parents were ballet dancers I got to go with them to performances and see the backstage area where I found out people dressed people for a living. Ever since, I never wanted to do anything else.
HC: What has been your favorite show to design hair and makeup for?
NR: That’s hard. Each show has a challenge and different demands and creativity. My favorite is whatever show we do right then. You are encompassed in the show and the research that goes with it. From watching films to reading books about the time period, it inspires you and you become obsessed. It is hard to pick a favorite show–I love period pieces though.
HC: Has your experience always been in theatre?
NR: No, I do photoshoots and film and television and commercials. I have a background in fashion design so I did runway shows, catalog and model costuming, and dance shows as well.
HC: Can you describe an experience on a film project you have worked on?
NR: Yes. Let’s see. One TV show had us do a Halloween theme at a high school in Pennsylvania and it was a first for me. There was this cockroach wrangler who came to handle the cockroaches for the girl’s prom dress costume as they being dumped on her during the take. And she didn’t want a stunt double. There were 4-5 takes with us all scrambling to get the cockroaches out of her dress before redoing the take. I thought it was fun. All these cockroaches would scatter and it was gross. We would still find them in the dress. The actress was such a trooper.
HC: Have you ever used your experience as a makeup artist to create an amazing Halloween costume?
NR: Sadly no. I love opening the door to trick or treaters, but I rarely go out. This is really a night off for me since I work with costumes and makeup every day. I just stay home and watch a movie. I really enjoy looking at the kids’ costumes. If I could pick one costume to wear though, I would be a storm trooper. It would have to be a really good costume, none of that cheap plastic.