Wig Care GuideEasyStagecraft Course · Tier 1B · Module 6 (Wardrobe & Makeup) · v1.0 · fitting, styling and re-setting hired wigs across a run
Why wigs are a line, not a footnote. Wigs are their own small cost centre and a maintenance commitment, not a one-off purchase. Period and character shows often need them, and a decent stage wig is neither cheap nor low-effort. Tier 1A Module 5 already had you budget a wig-hire line in the production budget — this guide is where that number comes from, and how you protect it across a run. The headline: hire over buy for most school needs, and budget the time to maintain them.
Hire over buy — the cost call
Option
Rough AU cost
When it wins
Hire a character wig (per show/season)
A$40–120
Most school needs — one or two period/character looks for a single production.
Buy a synthetic styled wig
A$30–120
A look you'll re-use across multiple shows, or where hire stock can't match.
Buy a good styled human-hair wig
Hundreds
Rarely justified at school level — only a hero piece reused for years.
Default: hire. A hired character wig at A$40–120 beats a several-hundred-dollar human-hair buy for a one-production look. Buy only when you'll genuinely re-use it — and then catalogue it into EasyInventory as school stock so next year's team finds it.
Synthetic vs human hair (so you know what you're handling)
Synthetic — holds its set well, cheaper, but heat-sensitive: most synthetic fibre melts or frizzes with normal irons/dryers/curling tongs. Only heat-style if the wig is explicitly labelled heat-resistant. This is the most common stage hire.
Human hair — styles like real hair (can take heat), looks most natural, but costs far more and needs more maintenance. Less common in school work.
The damage you'll be charged for. On a hire, the most common avoidable damage charges are: heat damage to a synthetic wig (someone tonged it), tangling/matting left un-brushed across the run, and makeup/foundation transfer at the hairline. All three are preventable with the routine below — and all three can cost more than the hire fee.
Fitting a wig (every performer, first wear)
Wig cap first. Flatten and contain the performer's own hair under a wig cap matched to their skin/hair tone. Pin braids/long hair flat — bulk underneath ruins the line.
Position by the hairline. Sit the front edge at the natural hairline, not too far forward (looks like a hat) or back (shows the cap).
Secure it. Wig pins / bobby pins through the wig wefts into the capped hair at the temples, crown and nape. For active numbers, more pins — a wig coming loose mid-scene is a show-stopper.
Blend the hairline. A touch of base over the front lace/edge so it reads from the house. (Foundation transfer here is the #1 hire damage — keep it minimal and clean it on return.)
Styling & re-setting across the run
Set it once, refresh it nightly. Style the wig to the design on a wig block/stand. Between shows it needs re-setting, not re-styling from scratch — that's why it's a maintenance line.
Synthetic = no heat unless labelled heat-resistant. Use rollers/pin-curls and a low cool setting, or steam where allowed. When in doubt, don't apply heat.
Brush gently from the ends up with a wide-tooth comb or wig brush — never a fine bristle brush yanked from the roots (it pulls fibre out).
Store on a wig block/stand, never crushed in a bag. A wig left in a box overnight is a matting job in the morning.
De-tangle and de-frizz with a little wig conditioner spray; for synthetic, a fabric-softener-and-water mist works in a pinch.
Daily wig routine (the maintenance shift)
When
Do
Before each show
Re-set the style on the block; check pins/clips; confirm wig cap stock; light foundation-blend kit ready.
Between performers / quick-changes
Pre-set wigs in change order (see the quick-change plot); brush out tangles; re-pin if loose.
After each show
Brush out, mist/de-frizz, return to the block; spot-clean foundation from the hairline; never leave wigs balled up.
End of run (hires)
De-tangle, clean the hairline, return to original style as far as possible, pack on a form. Photograph condition. Return clean = no damage charge.
Wig kit checklist
Wig caps (range of skin tones), wig pins + bobby pins
Hairline-blend base + makeup remover for clean-down
This guide on the wig-station wall
The one rule: a wig is hired hair you have to give back in the state you got it. Block it, brush it, keep heat off the synthetics, and clean the hairline — and the wig line stays the small predictable cost it should be, not a damage-charge surprise on return.