What are the most common types of special effects / fantasy / wound makeup you have had to do onstage?

Question

I am a makeup artist and I will be teaching a single hour-long stage makeup class this weekend to theatre teachers and want to present them with the most relevant information to help them with special effects / fantasy / wound makeup for the school stage. What do you think I should teach them? (I'll also try to answer any particular question you have for me as well.)

Answer 1

burns are about the most common "wound" makeup.
animal effects (cats are a very common fantasy character)
biomechanic effects (robots/cyborgs)
false hair/aging are practical skills, too...
though it's hard to cover more than one or two techniques very thoroughly in an hour.

Answer 2

Hi. I'll tell you a story. I was invited to a party once and brought some morticians wax, stage blood, and cover make-up. I made a base of the morticians wax on a friends wrist, covered it with the make up, and drew a butter knife across the area. Adding some of the stage blood created a VERY realistic looking wrist wound (which I stitched up in front of the rest of the party, claiming I had some veterinary training). Need less to say, I was never invited back.

Answer 3

We in our first responder classes have employed special effects to create realistic looking head wounds, chest wounds, bullet holes, exit wounds (large and gory, on the other side of the body from the entry wound).

Another interesting thing is to create a mask, like a Klingon face, a face from Star Wars, or other fantasy film or theatre.

How do you paint the face and skin to effect the look of death?

Answer 4

you're a makeup artist and you dont know what to teach? like which areas?
-wounds and scars
-exageration techniques
-feature outlining
-makeup and lighting
i was in drama class, so hope it's helpful!

Answer 5

Wounds with tissue and latex, are always a favorite.
How to prepare and use crepe hair, is also something fun to do.

Answer 6

Trying to age someone or make a person appear younger.

That's a neat occupation you have.