by Walter Allen

Created on: November 11, 2008

So you are producing a play or a musical and need costumes. You're interested in renting costumes, but aren't sure where to turn. Here's a few guidelines to get you started and keep you pointed in the right direction.

1) Do your research. Using Google, Ask, Yahoo, or any other favorite search engine, search for costume rental companies and sales companies. In this search, you are not looking for specific costumes. You should be looking for resources. As you search, keep a list of the different businesses that you come across. List their location. The further away the warehouse, the more expensive shipping will be. Check out the company's rules and policies for rental. Make sure that the return policies seem fair and that they allow you enough time after closing of your show to clean, package, and ship your rentals back to the company. But again, take notes. Do NOT rent yet. Look at pieces that you might be interested in and jot down the prices and the names of styles that you find. Many theatrical rental companies offer full shows. Find out if you can rent individual pieces for a show or if you have to rent the show as a unit.

2) Decide on your budget. Make sure that you have a clear understanding of how much you and your organization can spend on costume rental. Use your research to help guide you in setting maximum prices for the pieces that you need. If your organization has a large enough budget, consider hiring a costumer to organize and facilitate the costuming process.

3) Begin your search locally. If you live in an urban area, check with your local professional and community theatres to see if they offer costume rental. If they do, set up an appointment with them to view their stock. Make sure that you take a list of measurements with you so that you will be able to fit your actors into the costumes that you rent. Most of the time, you will have to put down a deposit in order to take any clothing out of the facility. Make sure that you have a credit card available for such occasions.

4) Rent online. If you can't find what you need locally, then you will need to rent online. Use the business list that you found in step one (research) to search for and reserve the rest of your costume needs. Be sure to read each business's rental guidelines so that there aren't any surprises. Many companies are very strict about their return dates and about the condition in which you must return the costumes.

5) Keep detailed records. Make sure that you track each individual

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