Reviews

 “The multipurpose set, cleverly designed by Katie Davenport, is a bleak reminder of the depressing ugliness of 1970’s Ireland.” The Times (UK), March 2020

“Katie Davenport’s steampunk costumes ensure the black-clad harbingers of Scrooge’s past (Fionnuala Flanagan), present (Camille O’Sullivan) and future (Katie Gilmore) are less frightening than freakish, but she also plays with more authentic Victorian traditions, creating, among other visual confections, a Christmas card coat.“ Irish Times November 2019

“A tension director Selina Cartmell visually exploits, delivering "A Christmas Carol" steeped in understated steampunk, looking all Victorian with just a hint of a modern twist. Something Katie Davenport’s luscious costumes credibly evoke, suggesting period norms for the most part, with a [Christmas] print patterned jacket, and Jacob Marley’s underwater helmet, suggesting a modern vision faithful to the past.” The Arts Review November 2019

“The first piece of set design you notice in Irish National Opera’s production of Griselda are the eight screens stacked on top of a guard booth to the right of the stage. A laptop and additional screens sit inside the booth; it is clearly a centre of acute observation. Centre stage is a two-floor setting; above is smart, even salubrious, with white walls, a long table, glasses and bottled water; below is functional: a plywood structure, an emergency exit sign and scaffolding. It’s a tale of two worlds: privilege and power, vulnerability and abuse.” journalofmusic.com October 2019

“a two-tiered set, designed by Katie Davenport, to contrast the brutality of the street, to which Griselda is consigned, with the secure world of the place, protected by security guards and cameras. In fact, the invasive nature of modern surveillance lies at the heart of Creed’s production; everything which happens is recorded by cameras and exposed in the media. Video screens are positioned down one side of the stage so that we can see everything that happens onstage and offstage. There is no privacy, and everyone is open to judgement by the anonymous mass, cleverly connecting the themes of Vivaldi/Goldoni’s 18th century conception to the present day. Davenport was also responsible for costume designs, which were not simply used to define the status of the characters, but also to cast them in an ironic light. Gualtiero, the King, is given an over-the-top golden suit, occasionally with a large crown and ermine collar. Griselda, however, when she is thrown out onto the street, is clothed as a typical homeless person, in a miserable tracksuit, which maintains the focus on her misery.” Operawire October 2019

“Katie Davenport’s bright, cartoon-like costumes [are] a veritable feast for young eyes” www.britishtheatreguide June 2019

“Katie Davenport’s costumes were spot on too: Pamina was becomingly decked in a riding cape, Tamino in tweed and Papageno in a wonderful straw costume. The domineering Sarastro was immaculately dressed in a red riding coat, top hat and a hunting crop. His foot servants donned white tie and tails and the women were traditional Victorian maids. The Queen of the Night mutated between a witch with horns to a pale, snake-like figure.“ Backtrack 23rd May 2019

“Completing the storybook feel is the damsel-in-distress Pamina of Anna Devin, beautifully dressed in Katie Davenport’s costumes.” GoldenPlec Michael Lee 25th May 2019

“Katie Davenport’s shiny plastic set offers reflective surfaces against which Sarah Jane Shiels’s lights shimmer and dance as we move from the various Dedalus homes to the educational institutions that inspire the hero’s intellectual journey. A giant faceless statue of the Virgin Mary looms over every scene, reinforcing the cold, impersonal hold that Catholicism has on Stephen, but it also emphasises its inevitable irrelevance. Davenport designed the costumes, too, and her denim suits offer a uniformity to the ensemble, enabling easy transformations from one character, and one Stephen, to the next.“ Irish Times 1st October 2018

“It is not surprising to see that sets and costumes are designed by Katie Davenport, and with them she captures a very fresh, bright, youthful flavour that is perfect. Davenport has created many wonderful sets before, but this is truly a triumph, lit wonderfully by Sarah Jane Shiels. Looking at the story through bright primary colours, in costumes as well, really lifts it, making it engaging, modern and very watchable, while also having throw backs to past times, such as the old dinner table and the gas SuperSer type heaters. It captures the spirt, and cheekiness of Riordan’s adaptation and by turn, of Joyce, while creating something very unique. By not looking at the visual literally, Davenport has created a world of its own, that while set back in another time, reminds us so much of our time.“ Red Curtain Review 30th September 2018

“Davenport’s visuals, supported by the high-energy lighting design of Sinéad McKenna, suddenly and rather magically kick in. The prologue’s dreariness is at once dispelled, replaced by the gleam and flash of Spalanzani’s laboratory, here presented as the venue for a modern-day techno-product launch. The product, of course, is Olympia, the lifelike mechanical doll, updated by Davenport to a humanoid inspired by the iconic female Maschinenmensch in Fritz Lang’s 1927 film Metropolis….costumes constantly grow and intrigue as the opera unfolds, particularly among the chorus, which sometimes presents a striking but organic gender fluidity.”Irish Times 17th September 2018

“Creed sets the work simply, in a kind-of present: mixing the now we know with the future imagined for us a few decades ago, complete with technology that mostly works and far more colourful daywear than we allow ourselves (with superb costumes designed by Katie Davenport).” GoldenPlec 22nd Septmeber 2018

"In a show without a set, Katie Davenport’s wonderfully brash, colourful and strikingly memorable costumes acted as a key visual link throughout."                             Irish Times 15th August 2018

"Katie Davenport’s sublime costuming, dashing with sequins and furs, is made opalescent by Sarah Jane Shiels’s breath-taking lighting. It perfectly captures the conceit of a production where the fairies’ magic is electricity." Exeunt magazine 13th August 2018

"Yet it is Katie Davenport’s captivating costumes which clearly convey “A Midsummer Night’s Dream’s” visual sensibility, one in which history often skirts close to nostalgia. Looking like an early 80s Vivienne Westwood collection stitched together with a heavy dose of 90s club culture, Davenport’s retro stylings capture all the fun, frolics, and flamboyance of student night at The Hacienda, or The Roxy. Even if some of the anarchic looks seem a little dated in places, Davenport’s vibrant, quirky, colourful costumes, showing just a hint of fetish, capture a punk-like, car crash, youthful energy that’s both striking and playful." The Arts Review 11th August 201

"The production does not take a particular spin on the play but does indulge itself in some lavish and elaborate costumes created by Katie Davenport. The fairy folk are a particular highlight, dressed in leather and plastic, they look like an androgynous glam rock band or extras from the Rocky Horror show". No more workhorse 12th August 2018

"With both Lucianne McEvoy’s Hermione, and Julie Rodgers’ Andromaque, delivering alternating monologues from a fixed position throughout, Katie Davenport’s exceptional costumes go a long way to creating much needed context, and filling in many unknown blanks, allowing McEvoy and Rodgers, under McLaren’s astute direction, to both deliver engagingly strong performances". The Arts Review 28th October 2017

"Costume-designer Katie Davenport creates two nightmare wedding dresses .. a spectacularly trashed meringue wedding dress. Irish Independent 5th November 2017