Theater students take part in makeup workshop with Japanese students

Starting on Sept. 17, Samo’s theater students had the opportunity to participate in a three-day makeup workshop with 44 students from Yamano College of Aesthetics in Tokyo, Japan. Students learned a variety of makeup techniques during the course that will be used in upcoming plays such as the fall play "You Can't Take It With You”. The Japanese students were touring Los Angeles, which is famous for its film and cosmetics industries. Part of the tour was a three-day makeup seminar, arranged in Samo’s theater space, during which they stayed at the DoubleTree hotel next to the baseball field. In exchange for the use of the space, Samo students were able to act as models, as well as technicians, for the workshop by Cinema Secrets, an agency in Hollywood. A team of two makeup artists who held the seminar taught the students essential skills such as creating bruises, cuts, glamorous makeup and stage makeup. Ms. Barraza, the acting teacher, explained how the skills will be used in the play “You Can't Take It With You”. “We will be aging some characters and modifying other character's looks. For example, there will be female characters who will play men, not ordinary men, but men with hair [and] balding men,” Barraza said. Students also hope to apply their zombie and vampire makeup skills in their next musical “The Addams Family”, which is scheduled to open Feb. 28, 2020. “We got a better understanding of how to make somebody look dead, make them look pale and hollow out their cheekbones, so that will be helpful,” Ava Jaffe (’22), who attended all three days of the seminar, said.   The seminar provided an opportunity for students of both schools to be exposed to a different language and culture, and the contrast was evident in many situations. “I told them that there was a Sephora near here and they started freaking out; that was really cute. It was [also] really cool to see how a different culture acts in a school setting. They were all so calm and respectful during the fire alarm that went off, while we were the complete opposite,” Jaffe said. Because the Japanese students did not speak English fluently, many students including Jaffe used google translate to communicate. Emery Komlos (’21) on the other hand, had an easier time interacting with Japanese students, as she is taking Japanese 2.  “I could understand the basic commands they were saying, like, ‘close your eyes’ or ‘I’m finished’. I felt like I did alright communicating with them,” Komlos said. At the end of the workshop, students had successfully made friends from a foreign country, learned new makeup techniques and acted as models. Both the students’ and teachers’ response to the workshop was entirely positive. “It was very engaging and interesting, and it was wonderful to see some of the students get made up, feel beautiful and get their photo taken,” Barraza said.