Showstopping outfits will be on sale in Bolton as the Octagon Theatre wardrobe opens its doors to the public.
Thousands of items will be going up for sale as the Octagon Theatre wardrobe department hold a costume sale on Sat 22 July.
The venue will be opening their doors to the public from 10am – 4pm for the first event of its kind in the theatre’s 56-year history.
The producing-house theatre make and source all their own costumes for their in-house productions, with over 16,000 garments of clothing in their costume store.
The sale will include clothes, shoes, hats, and lots more including everyday clothing items, vintage pieces, costume items and fancy-dress articles.
Costumes from productions from Jane Eyre to Singing in the Rain — and everything in between will be on sale.
Included in the sale will be a number of notable pieces from some of the theatre’s biggest productions including Don Lockwood’s suit and Lina Lamont’s pink dress from the 2016 production of Singin’ in the Rain, period costumes from Jane Eyre, and costume pieces from The BFG.
Wardrobe Manager at the Octagon, Su Newell said: “We have been building our costume collection for over 50 years so our store is literally bursting at the seams, we are delighted to be able to offer the items a second life by putting them on public sale.
"The sale will include a variety of men’s and women’s clothing, shoes and accessories with many items starting from just £1.
"Lots of the items will have been hand made by our wardrobe department so will be a chance to get a piece of Octagon history. We will also be selling make-your-own bunting and patchwork kits, made up of left over fabric scraps which will make wonderful craft projects.”
The most well-known item is the suit worn by Matthew Croke in the 2016 production of Singin’ in the Rain.
Other items include some of the sequin dresses worn in Singin’ in the Rain, some of the women’s and children’s costumes worn in the 2018 production of Jane Eyre and costumes from the 2015 production of The BFG.
The sale will also include lots of everyday men’s and women’s clothing items (shirts, blouses, trousers etc), vintage pieces, fancy dress and costume pieces (eg the Christmas Pudding hats from A Christmas Carol).
The Octagon Kitchen & Bar will also be open on the day for visitors to purchase food and drink.
The Octagon costume sale will take place at the Octagon Theatre on Saturday 22 July from 10am – 4pm.
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