This title is a guide to using basic costume and modern clothes to recreate the styles of the past. Each chapter offers a brief insight into the political or social moves that influenced the design ideas of the particular century or era before going on to explore the ways in which the period can be represented in costume on the stage. Topics include the principles of making basic costume and adapting it for historical plays, suggestions for finding inspiration - exploring ideas and doing research and practical and simple ways to suggest the class and status of characters. Also included is clothing for men, women and children. Ideas for using accessories to suggest the essential shape or form of a period costume and how to adapt simple but versatile patterns to create specific effects is also covered.