w69m023.jpeg [31KB]: "The Bat and the Bitten" Astrid Anderson & Karen Anderson [2] delivered a truly chilling performance as a vampire sires a new acolyte. Astrid is the victim in a white mini dress who transforms as the vampire envelops her in her huge black wings and secretly squirted Astrid with a homemade mixture of gelatin, red ink & yellow food coloring so that after the bite, Astrid opened her 14 foot white wings to reveal the blood that ran from her neck and down her dress to a horrified audience. It is still considered one of the best performances to this day and it was awarded both the Grand Prize & Judges' Choice. The blood concoction that Karen devised was to dissolve the gelatin in hot ink which created a solution that was liquid at body temperature and went solid at room temperature. The end result was that this stage blood flowed beautifully for the performance and then hardened shortly afterwards. I love it when props cooperate! The title, "The Bat and ! the Bitten" is a play on words from Astrid's father who asked, "If cats have kittens, do bats have bittens?" and thus a great costume idea was born! The Bat and the Bitten won Judges Choice and the Popular Vote #1. Photo by Celia Tiffany Courtesy of The International Costumers Guild / Pat & Peggy Kennedy Memorial Library

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