Presentation Work/Ideas ♡

Chosen Character -

Fraulein Kost is a German prostitute, living in Berlin in the late 20s/30s. She is a blonde, curvaceous lady with sharp whit and resilient attitude. Her family once owned a successful millinery company, specialising in hats and hair pieces for showgirls and cabaret performers. Like a lot of families at that time, working within a luxury, specialist industry they went bust and lost everything. Fraulein Kost had to resort to fending for herself and took to lodge at a boarding house. In Berlin, prostitution came in every kind of specific requirement you could ever imagine and it is there that she resorted to selling her body under the prostitution bracket of being a 'Hüte' prostitute. This meant that she worked from home performing many sexual acts to music for sailors, gentleman, upper class men, and lower class men all with a fetish for young girls in decorative, beautiful, showgirl-esqe hats.

This specific style of prostitution came to rise due to the increase in showgirls out of work, as there were so many Cabarets and the competition was fierce. In order to help make ends meet off stage (if they were lucky enough to have been on it), young girls sporting only a headpiece would turn their bedrooms into 'mini cabaret clubs',  and be expected to have at least 3 'costume changes' per session, so having an array of beautiful hats was a requirement and one that not many girls could realistically afford, making this one of the rarer types of prostitution, therefore it being a luxury.





Chosen Scene - 

The scene I have chosen, that I feel best represents Frl Kost, in all her patriotic glory is Act 1 Scene 12 when she begins to sing 'Tomorrow Belongs To Me'. This song, is a turning point in her character for me. The lyrics when spoken (without the joyful backing music that give it a really odd and humorous feel) makes you feel an overwhelming amount of empathy for her, and truly lets you connect with the reality of the survivor she is. 

During this scene, at the party, I want Frl Kost to be immaculately turned out, donning one of her infamous headpieces, with possibly a Nazi swastika in rhinestones? I like the idea of something beautiful representing something evil, exactly like Fraulein Kost.

Actioning -  to deceive.










Influences -

Feedback Given -

Sharon gave me great feedback regarding my ideas, and was really positive and encouraging of the route I was heading. The main concern was that my ideas wouldn't have been historically accurate, like the glamorisation of the Nazi swastika. Also, that Frl.Kost wouldn't have been an over extraverted person if you she was planning to join the Nazi party. These are ideas I now need to mull over once more and get a clearer idea of who she was.

I also need to create a mood board for what Frl. Kost's bedroom would have been like, and who the top milliners were at that time.