Note from Costume Designer John Merritt

Approaching the costume design for People Where They Are proved to be a rewarding experience, as it exposed to me the diverse communities that each of the characters came from. Researching and learning about these communities and their backgrounds was essential to learn more about their individual past experiences and what each did to eventually find themselves at Highlander.

For example, putting “May” in a homespun cotton gingham dress seemed appropriate as she is a hardworking Appalachian woman who is also a wife and mother in the 1950s. The dress itself is a cross between a house dress and a factory utility uniform, which coalesces her experience with dual roles as both a hardworking wife and mother and someone who was also working in hosiery mills and factories. This speaks to her having encompassed the bucolic environment that she has lived in her whole life. Having these certain qualities and ideas imbued in their individual costumes helps the audience understand the characters better, but it also assists the observer in better understanding the lives of the characters and what pieces of clothing could be in their closets.