Hire Someone with a Kit: Part #1

or, How to Underwhelm Al Pacino

“You don’t have a kit? How did you get this job?”

The guy at the 42nd St M.A.C. store was not amused.

A costume designer friend of mine, Yuri Cataldo, had been hired to design one costume for Al Pacino’s documentary about researching and filming his Salomé by Oscar Wilde. Al Pacino would sit in a café and an actor playing Oscar Wilde himself would come in and say a few lines, ending with “Fuck Gore Vidal” and exit. Yuri didn’t do makeup, so he hired me.

I had recently done the makeup for several friends based on this photo:

From the National Geographic Fashion book that my mom bought me as a college graduation present. This photo is of an Italian opera singer about to go onstage.

I gave everyone a slightly different color lip with an eyeshadow palette that my grandmother had given me. We had a great time at that party - I believe there were matching togas and braided headbands with fake grapes and flowers, etc etc. In the dark of that basement club the effect of our early 2000’s version …