Many of the people who came to see The Players by the Sea musical “The Toxic Avenger” Saturday, Oct. 26, came wearing Halloween costumes.
The Jacksonville Beach community theater hosted a Halloween Kick-Off Party in keeping with the theme of the show. The story follows Melvin Ferd, the Third, who wants to clean up the most polluted town in New Jersey and ends up being dumped into a vat of radioactive toxic waste.
Audience members came in some elaborate and creative costumes, with get-ups that ranged from witches to Willy Wonka to strips of bacon.
But the most elaborate costumes were in the show. Costume Designer Lisa Fleming created 40 different costumes for the story’s five cast members.
“The changes are fast, you won’t believe how quickly they change costumes,” said Fleming, a professional makeup artist. One character named White Dude plays 14 different characters, she said. Another, Black Dude, plays 15.
“They have that many different characters,” Fleming said. “I did 40 different character changes in total. Walk off stage and walk back on as somebody else completely different. Different shoes, different wigs. There are 16 different wigs.”
Fleming said it took a lot of preparation to create the costumes, and during each show, she is backstage managing all the changes. The musical runs through Nov. 10. “Lots of Velcro. Lots of snaps,” she said. “And in-depth notes.”
For that reason, Fleming was one of the few people at the party not in costume. She had to be super organized and focused on her job.
“Some cast have quick changes,” said Suzanne Hudson-Smith, Executive Director of the Players. “It’s amazing to watch.”
