Branch had already been thinking of the fairies as scavengers. Since fairies can live for centuries, she figured they would have picked up articles of clothing from other generations. They'd have a scarf or shoes or something much older than the Edwardian era.

With ideas about edginess and scavenging in her mind, Branch started looking at some of her favorite graphic novels. She was inspired by the darker images of her favorite Japanese artist. In the end, she says, she decided to give Puck and Oberon a bit of armor, a bit of fierceness.

Branch doesn't expect everyone who sees the play to sit and analyze the costumes. The average viewer might not notice that the male fairies have animal attributes while the female fairies bring to mind leaves or water.

However, she does expect the audience to be able to identify which group each character belongs to, the fairies or the humans. To that end, Branch dresses the humans in warmer, brighter colors, colors like orange and red. The fairies are given the colors of the earth and the trees.

As Branch thought about contrasting the supernatural world with the world of mortals, she also thought about comfort. At the turn of the last century, both men and women wore constraining clothes.

Branch found her mind kept returning to tight collars and stiff fabrics. She remembered the green military uniforms she'd designed for Pioneer five years ago, and decided to resurrect them. She started thinking about how happily humans would shed their rigid garments, after they'd lived for a time in nature.

If you go ...

What: "A Midsummer Night's Dream," Pioneer Theatre Company
Where: Pioneer Memorial Theatre, University of Utah
When: Feb. 15 through March 1
How much: $21-$39 (children's tickets half-price on Mondays and Tuesdays)
Phone: 581-6961
Web: www.pioneertheatre.org

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E-mail: susan@desnews.com