The Cats are Calling… Laura Piotrowski, Costume Shop Supervisor and Designer of UMD Theatre, is Going into Retirement.
Laura Piotrowski sits in the Costume shop, holding her cat mug. She's retiring at the end of this year and Anne of Green Gables is the last show she's designing the costumes for.
Photo by William Bauer
Through the twists and turns of the basement of the Marshall Performing Arts Center lies the UMD Theatre costume shop. Among the various work study students, design students, practicum students, faculty designers and instructors, Laura Piotrowski sits at a table, supervising the Costume shop and creating costumes for Anne of Green Gables.
Piotrowski has been immersed in theatre for her whole life. Now, she’s retiring from being the Costume Shop Supervisor for the theatre department at UMD.
From grade school to retirement, Piotrowski has been using and applying her theatre skills both in the theatre and beyond. She’s been both on stage and in the crew during her time, getting to experience it all. Piotrowski hasn’t designed for a few years, but she decided to for Anne of Green Gables. “I really wanted to do one more show before I go,” Piotrowski said. This year is her last with UMD Theatre.
Though this may be her last year, Piotrowski’s transition into theatre as a job started in college. She originally wanted to major in Spanish, but after a lousy professor, she decided to switch to theatre. When deciding what to switch to, Piotrowski said, “I liked English, but I didn’t feel like I wanted to be a writer or teacher. …Then I thought ‘well I like theatre’ and just kind of went into that.” She said she never imagined she would get the job she’s now retiring from.
Piotrowski, when looking back on her experiences, recalled “I was very fortunate.” She said that every show is different: “You could do shows that are the same time period, but each cast, each show brings something new to it.”
Piotrowski’s favorite part of working with UMD Theatre is the students. “I’m learning stuff from them as they’re learning things from me,” she says. “I feel it kind of helps keep me young [. . .] I like what they bring to the program. It’s just fun.”
Piotrowski particularly enjoys designing the 1920s and the late 1800s. The latter lines up with the current show, Anne of Green Gables, which is set in the 1890s. “There’s a few time periods I don’t like,” Piotrowski says, “but most every time, after you do all the research, you usually find some reason for liking it.”
“When you see [the costumes] up on stage and it looks like what you imagined it would look like,” Pitrowski says, “and you see the characters really come to life,” is the most rewarding part of the design process. It’s something the actors usually like most about the show process, too, she says. After they get out of their rehearsal clothes and into their real costumes, “all of a sudden it brings a focus to their character.”
Once Piotrowski retires, she is going to be working on all kinds of projects she’s been putting off. She belongs to the Duluth Fiber Guild, which has interest groups that do weaving and spinning. “I want to play more with that,” Piotrowski says, “and give my cats some attention, because they are really not happy with me right now because I’m working such long hours on Anne.” Piotrowski has done designs for the Zeitgeist Theatre in downtown Duluth. “I’ve run across various people that seem to be making plans for my retirement,” Piotrowski jokes, “so I might end up doing other shows if it really appeals to me.”
Piotrowski will continue to manage the costume shop at UMD through the end of the school year, handling the budgets, maintaining the shop, and making sure costumes get done on time.