About

Maggie Whitaker is a costume designer, performance creator, and artist. They have designed for film, live performance, commercials, and video games over the course of her career. They have designed costumes for several feature films including “Fairyland”, written by Alysia Abbot and directed by Andrew Durham, and “ Avenue of the Giants”, written and directed by Finn Taylor. Their big break into film came from their work with their longtime collaborator and creative artner- Drag Laureate of San Francisco- D’Arcy Drollinger on his first feature film; “Shit and Champagne”

Before moving into film, they designed several world premieres of nationally recognized plays including “Eureka Day” by Jonathan Spector at the Aurora Theatre, “HeLa” by Lauren Gunderson and Geetha Reddy at TheatreFirst, “I and You,” by Lauren Gunderson at Marin Theatre, “Truffaldino Says No!” by Ken Slattery at Shotgun Players, and “Wildflowers,” by Lila Rose Kaplan at UCSD.  Their work as a costume designer has been seen at theaters internationally including The Apollo Theatre, Teatro Tinta Roja, Canal Café Theatre, TheatreWorks, Marin Theatre, Aurora Theatre, Magic Theatre, Ray of Light Theatre, Shotgun Players, Crowded Fire Theatre, and Cutting Ball Theatre. In addition to theirr work on new plays, Mx. Whitaker has designed for classic theatre and opera, including “Merry Wives of Windsor”, “Twelfth Night” and “A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream” by William Shakespeare as well as Cosi Fan Tutti, Dialogues of the Carmelites, The Coronation of Poppea, and many more. 

They received their BFA in Theatre Design at the University of South Florida and their MFA in Costume Design at the University of San Diego, California.  In addition to their production work, they created a fully accredited BFA and MFA Costume Design Program for the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Mx. Whitaker has written courses for both an online and onsite program that deal with the specific training of costume designers through individual project work as well as collaborations with the School of Acting and the School of Motion Pictures and Television. Their alumni have gone on to fellowships at Santa Fe Opera and American Conservatory Theatre, and can be found working in New York and Los Angeles.

Mx. Whitaker is a recipient of Shotgun Players: Bridging the Gap Grant for 2016, and received a BATCC award for costume design for their work on “Truffaldino Says No!” at Shotgun Players, and for “Hooded, or Being Black for Dummies”at Custom Made Theatre. Their costume designs for Jerry Springer the Opera, Assassins, and Jesus Christ Superstar have all been nominated for awards. They are the resident designer at Ray of Light Theatre and a founding member of Repulsive Women. Mx. Whitaker is a member of United Scenic Artists Local 829.