But we’d be a fake and a phony if we didn’t tell you more, tell you more about the importance of the musical’s other memorable fashion moments and the concept behind them.
When piecing together the looks for the cast, Albert pulled references from the 1950s greaser subculture that the T-Birds and their girl gang The Pink Ladies are part of. But he also left room for interpretation and imagination.
“I started out trying to be realistic,” Albert previously told Stylist U.K. “But the director wanted more color. I ended up thinking, ‘These people are all meant to be in high school and, yet, they are coloring the grey streaks in their hair. Why the hell am I trying to be realistic? It’s ridiculous!’ So we just went mad with it.”
Sandy’s wardrobe alone features a rainbow of pastels. For her first day of school at Rydell High, Sandy armors herself with a bright yellow poodle skirt, matching cardigan and white button down. The added detail of her floral hair accessories is a subtle reminder of her innocence and girliness.
It’s a stark contrast to Pink Ladies leader Rizzo (Stockard Channing), who rules the first day of school in a black body-hugging dress with popped collars. And it’s only when Rizzo believes she’s pregnant that her wardrobe changes from sexy to sweet, as she wears a soft cashmere sweater in pastel purple during her number “There Are Worse Things I Could Do.”
And when it came time for prom night, the costumes and the characters went together like rama lama lama ka dinga da dinga dong.
Sandy dons a white frilly dress for prom, a wholesome, pure choice compared to Rizzo’s plunging red polka dot look and the low-cut strapless gown Marty (Dinah Manoff) wore to catch the eye of hot shot radio announcer Vince Fontaine (Edd Byrnes).
And then there’s Frenchy (Didi Conn), who looks like a beautiful blonde pineapple with her bleached hair and matching getup. Throughout the film, we see that Frenchy isn’t afraid to experiment with her style but still sticks to what’s trendy in 1958.
