Costume maker to performance hairdresser
A costume maker already meets 58% of what the performance hairdresser role asks for. The move turns on 5 required skills not yet in the profile.
43.8/ 100
1 How much of what a performance hairdresser is expected to do is already part of a costume maker’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the performance hairdresser role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A performance hairdresser role treats 8 of its required skills as things a costume maker already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adapt to artists' creative demands
- meet deadlines
- prepare personal work environment
- translate artistic concepts to technical designs
- understand artistic concepts
- work ergonomically
What stands in the way is 5 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A performance hairdresser role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a costume maker background worth leading with.
- already held manage consumables stock management skills
- already held prepare personal work environment management skills
- already held understand artistic concepts communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held work safely with mobile electrical systems under supervision working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held prevent fire in a performance environment assisting and caring
- already held translate artistic concepts to technical designs communication, collaboration and creativity
All 14 carried skills, including the 8 the performance hairdresser role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 12 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn apply hair cutting techniques required
- still to learn perform quick hair changeovers required
- optional, not held dye wigs optional
- still to learn safeguard artistic quality of performance required
- optional, not held create wigs optional
- optional, not held design make-up effects optional
- optional, not held draw make-up sketches optional
- optional, not held advise client on technical possibilities optional
- still to learn maintain wigs required
- still to learn hair required
- optional, not held document your own practice optional
- optional, not held decide on wig making process optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a performance hairdresser role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 14 skills that carry over
- already held adapt to artists' creative demands skill
- already held meet deadlines skill
- already held prepare personal work environment skill
- already held translate artistic concepts to technical designs skill
- already held understand artistic concepts skill
- already held work ergonomically skill
- already held work safely with chemicals skill
- already held work with respect for own safety skill
- already held develop professional network skill
- already held keep personal administration skill
- already held manage consumables stock skill
- already held manage personal professional development skill
- already held prevent fire in a performance environment skill
- already held work safely with mobile electrical systems under supervision skill
7 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held create wigs optional
- optional, not held decide on wig making process optional
- optional, not held design make-up effects optional
- optional, not held document your own practice optional
- optional, not held draw make-up sketches optional
- optional, not held dye wigs optional
- optional, not held advise client on technical possibilities optional
34 held skills the performance hairdresser role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adapt costumes skill
- not needed by the target role adapt existing designs to changed circumstances skill
- not needed by the target role assemble costume parts skill
- not needed by the target role attend rehearsals skill
- not needed by the target role cut fabrics skill
- not needed by the target role define costume fabrication methods skill
- not needed by the target role develop drama production process skill
- not needed by the target role develop the look of a production skill
- not needed by the target role draw up artists' measurements skill
- not needed by the target role draw up costume patterns skill
- not needed by the target role draw up costume sketches skill
- not needed by the target role dressmaking knowledge
- not needed by the target role dye fabrics skill
- not needed by the target role finish costumes skill
- not needed by the target role finish project within budget skill
- not needed by the target role follow directions of the artistic director skill
- not needed by the target role follow work schedule skill
- not needed by the target role keep up with trends skill
- not needed by the target role maintain rigging equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain theatre equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain workshop space skill
- not needed by the target role manage technical resources stock skill
- not needed by the target role organise costume fittings skill
- not needed by the target role organise workshop space skill
- not needed by the target role perform costume settings skill
- not needed by the target role plan workshop activity skill
- not needed by the target role sew pieces of fabric skill
- not needed by the target role support a designer in the developing process skill
- not needed by the target role use manual sewing techniques skill
- not needed by the target role use personal protection equipment skill
- not needed by the target role work safely with machines skill
- not needed by the target role work with the camera crew skill
- not needed by the target role work with the director of photography skill
- not needed by the target role work with the lighting crew skill
1 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn hair required
Common questions about this move
Can a costume maker become a performance hairdresser?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A costume maker already covers 58% of what a performance hairdresser is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 8 of which the performance hairdresser role treats as required.
What skills does a costume maker need to become a performance hairdresser?
5 required skills are missing, plus 7 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is apply hair cutting techniques.
How hard is the move from costume maker to performance hairdresser?
Its learning distance is 43.8 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.