As assistant wardrobe supervisor on the North American tour of Disney’s “The Lion King” — now at San Francisco’s Orpheum Theatre — Quinto Ott is among the nearly 150 people it takes to mount the blockbuster show and in direct contact with its 49 cast members.
“I’m pretty lucky to be on such a well-oiled machine,” says Ott, a New Yorker whose job tasks include heading up the sewing room; altering, repairing and maintaining costumes (there are 300 costume changes in each performance); overseeing staff and freelance stitchers; and taking charge of dressers at stage left.
“During the show, I’m onstage, helping get people in and out of stuff, in cities where I’m allowed to touch things,” says Ott. However, in San Francisco, where union rules are followed, he says, “I am there merely advising and letting our capable local technicians take care of all of it.”
“It’s a big team of folks from the community who really help us get the show up,” says Ott, describing 18 local people hired for wardrobe, with two specifically doing laundry and 16 working as dressers and assisting with beading, pressing, steaming or repairing shoes.
Uniquely both a performer (a bass in Gilbert and Sullivan productions) and costume expert (he has a degree in fashion design and construction from Indiana University), Ott says the corsets in “The Lion King” (which opened in 1997 and has been seen internationally by 112 million people) often require attention.
While the delicate beaded corsets worn by active principal characters Mufasa, Simba and Nala take a beating, routinely needing repair, Ott adds that corsets are part of nearly every costume, providing structure under the outfits’ other elements.
Ott particularly is fond of the bottom of the wildebeest costume, that has “thousands of pieces of yarn and raffia and leather and all sorts of stuff.” He adds, “It’s like a giant pair of fringe pants and they’re so much fun.”
A primary feature for the costume for Rafiki the mandrill-shaman is what Ott calls “the bum board,” which goes over backside and is like the red bottom of a baboon. The assortment of items on the front includes a gourd; a horse-hair-like tail called a wisp; patches; and clips of dangling beads and shells.
A “brilliant uniformity” is how Ott describes the numerous grasslands costumes, with nifty headpieces and grass hoop skirts cleverly designed so that the bottom of each is eight inches off the ground regardless of the size and height of the actor wearing it.
The gazelle leotards are among the sturdiest costumes, while the lioness silks tend to get ripped or worn out due to heavy use. But the fact that many of the costumes are worn just once in the show makes it easy for him and the team to do repairs. If something goes wrong, he says, “We usually have until the next show to make sure everything’s all right.”
Interestingly, wardrobe is separate from the department for the dazzling puppets (including 18- and 14-foot stilt walking giraffes; an elephant, dubbed Bertha by the crew, who is 13 feet long, 12 feet high, 9 feet wide and worn by four actors; and the 45-pound warthog Pumbaa) designed by Julie Taymor, the Tony Award-winner who conceived and directed the show.
Calling “The Lion King” and its costumes iconic, having an impact on the world of theater in “pretty huge ways,” Ott offers a heartfelt invitation to prospective theatergoers: “We’re here through the end of December, so people should come down and see the show cause it’s awesome. It’s great.”
As for his future beyond this gig behind the curtain, Ott, a self-described theater nerd since childhood in Arizona, says he’s open to working with costumes again or performing. His dream role would be Sweeney Todd. Asked which “Lion King” character he’d prefer, after a brief pause, he says, “Oh gosh, I would vote for either Scar or Pumbaa.”
Disney’s “The Lion King” runs through Dec. 30 at the Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market St., San Francisco. Tickets are $56-$300 at broadwaysf.com.