Kristina Tollefson
I wasn’t one of those kids who knew I had to have a life in the theatre.
Growing up in Southern California, I played varsity soccer and marched in band until we moved to a small farm in South Dakota when I was 14. I discovered theatre because it was about the only thing to do. After graduating from high school I was offered an acting scholarship to South Dakota State University and declared a theatre major to avoid the “finding yourself” classes required for undecided majors. I settled on teaching high school theatre, a job often done by English teachers, so I also added an English major. I came into costumes quite by accident. I was required to work on the department productions and the costume shop had the most convenient hours. Eventually, everyone just got used to seeing me there and assumed I knew what I was doing (they were wrong). Without any costuming faculty or staff we were on our own to figure out what to do. I faked my way through several shows before I stopped feeling like a complete sham.
I distinctly remember the moment I was walking across campus a couple years later with our faculty scenic designer, Desi Roybal, when he said, “You know, you could go to graduate school for costume design.” That conversation changed my life. I added minors in art and textiles & clothing, began looking into graduate programs, and tried to figure out what a portfolio was. I attended graduate school at Purdue University studying under Joel Ebarb and upon graduation became the college professor I never had.
The majority of my work is traditional theatre, though I’ve also begun work in other areas. My book, Too Much is not Enough: The History in Harriett’s Closet (with co-author Jodi Ozimek), catalogs the vast wardrobe of an Orlando, FL philanthropist and connects her fashion choices to her personal history. In my collaboration with Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz on Las Reinas: Pieta the artist examines the grief of losing one’s child to intolerant violence. After the adoption of our first daughter my blinders were removed realizing the immense responsibility I faced raising a child of color and the reality of the dangers my daughter faces in our society. I take seriously the responsibility to use my skills to combat stereotyping and accurately depict the lives of people of all races and social standings.
Video provided by the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery featuring Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz, the Howard University Gospel Choir, DJ Stereo 77, audience members and volunteer participants including Dr. Jeffreen Hayes and Adiza Jibril.
