“References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot” by Rivera

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Table of Contents

References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot Analysis
Gabriella’s emotional state and behavior
Exploring Nudity as a Conceptual Dogma in Drama
Clothing Design Selection
Works Cited

References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot Analysis

The play References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot represents an intriguing surrealistic story about the fancy Latina woman, Gabriela, who sustains reflective conversations with her cat. The central issue of the work is a marriage crisis. The woman, who is a central character of the story, faces some hardness of the long-distanced relationships with her husband, who serves for military services. The specification of the drama is predetermined by the discrepancy between reality and dreaming. Specifically, throughout the story, Gabriella often gets lost in her thoughts and observes some creative pictures of her subconscious mind (Rivera 13).

Costume Design-Directed Questions

One can differentiate several questions, which regard the play’s clothing design. These are: “Why does the author of the play depict Gabriella either nude or in some light bed-like clothes?”, “How does the clothing style reflect Gabriella’s feelings?”, “How do the costumes of Gabriella relate to the period?”, and “Is there any interrelation between Gabriella’s clothing and her shaking state of mind?” The first question is critical for perceiving whether there is a need to create a costume for the character or no.

The second question is important to understand since it can point to the color of the required costume. For instance, if a person is desperate or angry, dark clothing is usually selected. Light-heartedness and tenderness refer to white color. In the third question, the spirit of the period is shown. The question helps to find out whether the costumes have to match fashion tendencies. Finally, the nature of Gabriella’s feelings is disclosed in the third question, which helps to understand that she was not truly insane and her emotions were connected with love. Therefore, light coloring has to be used.

Gabriella’s emotional state and behavior

Gabriella’s emotional state

Several quotations may be used to respond to the first question. These are the following lines: Gabriella: “I have not had a lover’s eyes to look into for months” (Rivera 10). The unity with the abstract world and the detachment from the real-life virtues is shown in the references to the moon: Gabriella: “Someday we are going to shuffle off to the grave – together – wrinkled and slow” (Rivera 12); Gabriella: “I know you, yes I do. I have known you for a long time” (Rivera 9). The latter reference was chosen based on the supposition that it depicts Gabriella’s disconnection from the time dimensions since she found the cat, which she was addressing, only the previous day. Finally, Gabriella’s genuine fear is shown in the cry: Gabriella: ”Enemies!” (Rivera 37).

Therefore, the first question refers to the emotional state of Gabriella, which is reflected in her appearance. The question of the character’s nudeness was contemplated by multiple critics. It can be concluded that the costume design of the character complies with the openness of her soul.

Gabriella’s irrational behavior

The irrationality of Gabriella’s behavior and her insanity are revealed in the quotations, which do not reflect reality: Gabriella: “Benito gave me this gun” (Rivera 35); Gabriella: “Who is out here with you? Freaks?” (Rivera 45); Gabriella: “I defended our house in Germany!” (Rivera 35); Gabriella: “Shut your filthy mouth!” (River 41) These references were selected for they depict the distorted love of Gabriella to Benito, which explains her behavior. The character admired her husband but still could not stand his absence.

Exploring Nudity as a Conceptual Dogma in Drama

The development of nudity depiction both in dramatic works and classic literature has a long story. According to the examination of Gabriella’s clothing design, it is quite impressive that the married woman and a wife of a distinguished sergeant are represented without any clothes. For instance, throughout her connection to the moon and conversations with the cat, the female either wear some open T-shirts or does not wear anything at all. Since the representation of naked Gabriella creates a regular motif throughout the work, it is critical to access the conceptual background of this tendency as well as regard nudity from symbolism, which was elaborated throughout multiple centuries.

Source One

The Nude: Survey in Western Culture 2014. Web.

The resource helps me to understand that the concept of nudity has mostly been condemned throughout the centuries. Thus, I learned that most characters, which were unclosed in the works, signified lust and voluptuousness (“The Nude: Survey in Western Culture” par. 12). Indeed, the author recounts multiple examples of Gabriella cheating on her husband.

Source Two

Bible vs. Nakedness 2014. Web.

The resource helps me to connect the light clothing of Gabriella to theological symbolism. As a result, I deduced that the main character revealed sinful behavior because the Bible states that it is indecent to disclose one’s body to the strangers. (“Bible vs. Nakedness” par. 5). Consequently, the open clothing of Gabriella signifies lustful humiliation.

Clothing Design Selection

Costumes’ Analysis

Costume 1: light white dress. As a costume designer, I am interested in a complete elaboration of the clothing styles, which would be suitable for the central character of the drama References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot. I consider that Gabriella may be dressed in a light white dress, which signifies pureness and dedication but does not fit for being worn in public.
- Reasoning: It has been mentioned that the costumes of Gabriella show her inner feelings as well as reflect her insanity. Since the drama is surrealistic, the author puts a strong emphasis on the expression of emotions through multiple symbols, one of which is clothing. The central character is going insane, and her attitude towards a moon, which is represented as a living man, as well as the cat, is contradictory and hardly understood by the public. However, the original picture, which is provided by the author of the drama, is entirely different. It is obvious that a female is devoted to her beloved man and does not disclose her body to any other living creature. The woman is full of love and real feelings, but her consciousness is vague.
- Referencing: The selection is made based on the symbolic divinity and emotionality of the white light dress (Smith par. 3).

Costume 2: The traditional white chiffon dress, which relates to the era.
- Reasoning: It is critical to relate the clothing of the character to the original costume styling, which evolved in the last years of the 20^th century. The elaborated design provides a compound sustention of the drama’s central idea as well as eradicates the distorted image of Gabriella.
- The selection is based on the popularity of vintage chiffon at the beginning of the 21st century (“Chiffon Material” par. 1).

Works Cited

Bible vs. Nakedness 2014. Web.

Chiffon Material 2000. Web.

Rivera, Jose. References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot, New York: Broadway Play Publishing, 2001. Print.

Smith, Kate. All about the Color White. 2012. Web.