Jon Morrell

When I was fifteen, I found out from family friends that their daughter was studying stage design. Until then, it had never even crossed my mind that such a profession existed—that everything on stage was actually so thoughtfully organized. So, I enrolled in a foundation course without really knowing where it would lead. Later, I had to choose between four schools where I could continue my studies. That’s how I ended up at St. Martins College, which had an excellent reputation. It was my ticket to London - I could finally escape the small town.

When I was applying, I could list three choices. My teachers warned me not to even write down St. Martins, saying the competition there would be intense - not just anyone, but the most talented and best-prepared students would be applying. At the time, only 20 students were accepted, the courses were extremely small. But I didn’t care - I didn’t listen to them. What mattered to me was that I knew what I wanted, where I wanted to go. I was lucky to get in. If I had thought it through more… But I got in, I survived. Ignorance is bliss (laughs).

While studying, I met wonderful visiting lecturers, whom I later assisted both on TV sets and in theatre. For a long time, I focused on working with Antony McDonald, and that was a fantastic experience. In addition to working with different designers, I created designs for five productions at the Drama School - those were my first steps in theatre.

During the foundation course, I had to find a summer job - my parents weren’t going to support me financially. At first, like most teenagers, I did the worst and most boring jobs just to earn something.

Then I got interested in clothes and fashion - after all, it was the 1980s, the post-punk era with all its music and style - an amazing time. I started driving my parents crazy by dressing in the strangest outfits.

A friend and I began sewing costumes ourselves and selling them in alternative, small shops. We used old curtains or anything we could find at huge clearance sales. We set up a workshop in my parents’ house and sewed gothic wedding dresses and other kinds of fantastical reworked garments, which we sold at prices that allowed us to earn a bit.

All that time, my sense of fashion - or the clothes I was creating - already had a certain theatrical flair. So the transition from clothing to costume design was quite seamless. Either way, it was always clear that I wasn’t going to university to become a lawyer or a doctor.

In general, all this self-expression was more about the classic small-town teenager’s desire to stand out and break free - dyed hair, makeup, jewelry... every parent’s nightmare. Maybe it doesn’t seem so surprising today, but back then, in such a small community... Neighbors would come to my parents and say, “I saw your boy - he wasn’t wearing any shoes!” or “Did you know his hair is red now?” Still, my parents were amazing. They’d just say, “Well, yes, but he’s an artist! That’s what they do.” So, I had to go into theatre (smiles).