Mineral Lifestyle Take to the Stage

As new theatre production Duck Hunting prepares to open, Ashleigh Sharman speaks to Mineral Lifestyle owner Kristy Hines on the hair spa’s important collaboration.

Playing at Sydney’s King Street Theatre in Newtown until November 29, Mineral Lifestyle’s team of creatives are working behind-the-scenes as the production’s official hair and makeup artists.

“The opportunity came through a personal connection with the directors of Contemporarian Theatre Company. Their vision is to create a truly European theatre experience here in Sydney — combining both film and theatre to tell their story,” explains Kristy.

“The project sounded exciting and I knew it would be a great creative opportunity for the Mineral Lifestyle team who have had the opportunity to work on photo shoots, TV and fashion shows but not yet theatre!”

Kristy adds that the collaboration has also provided immense professional development for her team including networking and creative management.

“This type of project is not just about making a client happy. You have many people to satisfy and need to learn, quickly, how to work with a director, set, costume and lighting designer — supporting their own creativity but also making the actors feel great in character.”

Rather than learning in a traditional environment, through classes or workshops, being part of a creative project has allowed the Mineral Lifestyle team to grow and learn in a different way by implementing a multitude of techniques while focusing on professionalism.

“The key thing the team has learned is continuity. Being able to replicate a style continuously for weeks (and by any team member) has been a challenge but also been a team bonding experience; helping us to understand how each team member approaches producing their work,” says Kristy of the hair and makeup brief that asked for a modern look reflective of the play’s Melbourne setting yet 1970s Soviet heritage.

“Although our team have worked with a variety of projects in the past we’re never worked on or co-ordinated a long running hair and makeup project of this scale. Our biggest learning curve has definitely been the scale of commitment. Simplicity is not always so simple!”

Thinking of involving your team in a theatre project? Kristy says to keep in mind the following:

Performance dates and times for the entire season.
Pre-productions requirements for dress rehearsal, media and photo shoot.
Character briefs from both the director and the stylist: ensure you have a meeting with all involved so you’re all on the same page.
Production schedule from start to finish: understand how many hours is required of your business both on site and off site.
How much time prior to each show will the venue allow access for hair and makeup and what facilities you will have access to: this may affect how many team members you need to send for each performance.
Roster ahead for your team to meet the requirements and also discuss with the production team your employer obligations: don’t assume or expect the production team to understand your employer obligations.
Translating hair and make up for stage means you need to take into account limited costume change times and being able to have makeup and hair that can fit many different scenes and be recreated daily for the run of the show.