Penny Pinching

With the advancement of technology there has come easier access to a lot of things. With a simple google search one can find treasures and items once only available in a Sears catalogue or advertisements.

I remember starting my Beatles tribute band, The Beatells, and when I started taking it more seriously than before my mission (around the same time I began portraying Santa Claus). Arguably, the most famous Beatles tribute band is 1964 the Tribute, which I have seen many times and who WERE the Beatles in my own life. Many were changed by the Ed Sullivan show, I was changed by 1964 the Tribute when they played in Rexburg at the turn of the century. Mark Benson, one of the founders and original cast members has commented on how hard it was to find the proper guitars in 1984, when they first started. As a luthier, he actually built or pieced together most of the guitars they still use. The suits were tuxedos which they had an extra button added on or felt added to the collars.

Before the internet one had to be extremely resourceful; self sufficient to a degree. When I started collecting instruments for my band, I had to find what looked close enough, modify it the rest of the way, and then fine-tune a lot of settings to get not just the LOOK but also the SOUND to come through. I used to run a successful YouTube channel called "Stu's How-to's" which showed knockoff guitars being turned into less-expensive and quite accurate versions of the instruments the Beatles used.

My Santa Claus journey began in 2016 and with it came a need for the best gear I could afford on my small budget. It was the hours and hours I spent researching that summer (well in advance of Christmas) that helped me to "hit the ground running." My first season would have been awful had I not done research. As a theatrical bearded young man, there was a lot to make up for where I obviously fell short before I could be, in my opinion, a "decent" representative of Santa Claus.

Below are two photos taken within weeks of each other. The first is what I COULD have looked like on my first season had I given up on improving my look until after the season. The second photo was taken right before I began my first season in 2016 as a Santa Claus.

The beard was the most important aspect. I had grown up seeing awful faux beards. Luckily, I found Duck Dynasty lace-backed beard for $36. Without breaking the bank I had a decent beard, an Amazon suit, and a pair of vinyl boots. I replaced both my vinyl belt and vinyl boots the following year after experiencing for myself just how unqualified they were.

If the beard, boots, and belt don't look authentic as a child approaches, credibility of that Santa Claus is put into extreme danger. I believe that because of my research, my first and second seasons were equivalent to perhaps what the average Joe would experience in their 4th and 5th years (if research and experience was at a minimum).

The first photo below is from my second season (2017) where I uptgraded to a better belt and actual pair of leather boots and perscription round glasses for $10 from Zenni Optical. The second photo is from my third season (2018). You can see a new mustache and beard style. This is also my last year wearing these stock Amazon suits.

Once I joined the Santa Claus community, a few years after being a Santa Claus, I was introduced to a lot of resources and Facebook groups. It amazed me then, and it still amazes me today how many performers who claim to have many years of experience cannot find simple items on the internet. The most common comment I see is "Where'd you get that?/ What's the link?" Self sufficiency has seemed to go down the drain, and as a community there are many who expect to leach off the hard work and success of others.

Perhaps that is why I started the Workshop. Everything in once place. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I use the Resource page myself to find links to things I use as a Santa Claus. Wig tape, shampoo, all the goodies, without the website I'd be lost. I hope my research and preparation is useful to you!

I encourage you to do your own research, google things often, and work to find those little gems which will make the growth of your portrayal and skills accellerate exponentially. Whether that be videos, physical items, tutorials, articles, et al. FIND THEM. They will hold much more value for you than if they were handed to you in a link.

There's nothing wrong with asking for help or recommendations. I believe if one does research and needs help, there's nothing shameful about asking for help. It's the "Little Red Hen" syndrome I take problem with (I will go more into detail on this in another post). One must do the work, not expect to reap what they have not sown.

I waited for years for a buckle inspired by Tim Allen's The Santa Clause films to be made. There were imitations and things that looked similar, but not any that were up to the standard I have. Even now, I can be quite picky with the things that I wear (styling my own beards, making my own suits, etc.). I'm happy to say, that the effort and research has paid off. After years of waiting for a buckle to be made, I decided to take matters into my own hands.

Within a week I had finally concluded my years and years of "casual" research, screenshots, and contacts and tracked down the much needed information I thought I'd never have. I'm very happy with the end result. Boot buckles are being made and I have prototypes of the properly sized belt buckle arriving this week. I'm beyond excited to implement these pieces and the baroque style into my portrayal ensemble.

That's not to say everyone needs to design and have pieces cast, make their own suits, or style their own beards. I would advocate that a knowledge of WHAT Santa Claus SHOULD look like (how a suit properly fits on the body, belt placement, beard aesthetic, etc.) is a firm enough foundation upon which to build.

Doing research and working on the little things in the "off season" will help you experience and learn lessons much sooner rather than later. Instead of waiting to learn things in by or in the 25th season, decide not to be a regular joe and go the extra mile. There is no substitute for experience. Do your research today, the Christmas performer community and the children around the world deserve better. We need YOU to be a part of that.

What do you think? Drop a comment!

Yours, as always,

Santa Stuart

I'm still dialing the colour in on the buckles I'm having cast. You can see some are orange, other's very yellow, and some look even pink. Square buckles and reindeer buckle for comparison. Natural light from the window tones down the colours, but they can be very very saturated in low light.