Mr. Casaday's Costumes Still Take Center Stage

With a new retail shop, the Casaday Collection threads a needle into the future

BY GRETA FISHER // POSTED JUNE 17, 2025

At the 2024 Academy Awards, John Cena came onstage naked (holding a small strategically-placed sign) to make a point: costumes are an indispensable part of any production. For 87 years here in north-central Indiana, the Casaday costume collection has been the place to go to rent costumes for local theatrical productions.

Founded by local arts educator James Lewis Casaday, the collection started at South Bend's Central High School, where Mr. Casaday directed legendary productions. He also designed and sewed all of the costumes needed, famously without needing measurements or patterns. From Cyrano de Bergerac to South Pacific, and Shakespeare to Arthur Miller, Mr. Casaday and his team created fabulous dresses, doublets, and dirndls. He kept everything he made, and as his reputation grew, so did the collection.

By the time Mr. Casaday retired, there were thousands of garments from a multitude of cultures and time periods ready for use in plays and musicals. After his departure, school authorities were convinced it would be a shame to throw it all away, and made a plan to keep the collection intact.

Jean Savarese, one of Mr. Casaday's sewing moms, took over the curation of the collection as it moved from place to place and continued to grow.

Known as “The Costume Lady,” Jean personally costumed shows at schools and theatre companies in the area for the next 40 years, and helped others find what they needed in the collection. Jean was eventually joined by her daughter Deborah, and they are still remembered fondly by many current users of the collection.

Eventually, the South Bend schools decided to get out of the costume business. In 2015, the collection was re-organized as the Casaday Costume Company, an independent non-profit, and opened completely to the public, because who doesn't like to play dress up? Today, with a staff of three and a small group of dedicated volunteers, Casaday serves over 400 events per year, providing costumes to schools, organizations, and individuals, not just for theatre, but for displays, themed events, history projects, renaissance fairs, and photo shoots.

Today, the Casaday collection consists of over 100,000 items, in roughly 20,000 square feet of space. In the collection can be found men's and women's clothing from prehistory through the ancient world, the middles ages, the renaissance, the colonial period, the Victorian era, the 20th century, and up to the present day. Accessories such as hats, gloves, scarves, shoes, and jewelry complete the outfit, and outerwear such as coats and capes are also available.

In addition, the unique pieces required for particular productions sit waiting, from silverware for Beauty and the Beast's “Be Our Guest”, to mermaids for The Little Mermaid and Peter Pan, to the man-eating Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors.

Casaday also maintains an archival collection. Vintage and antique clothing dating as far back as 1850 is kept for the study of period garment construction and details. To share some of our favorites, in partnership with the St. Joseph County Public Library on their Michiana Memory website, Casaday maintains an online archive focusing on local makers and vendors. For women who remember shopping at Milady or the Frances Shop, or men who got their suits at Gilbert's or their ties at Max Adler, users can browse images of some wonderful examples from these stores. There are also examples from local tailors, milliners, and furriers.

As we look into the future, Casaday is poised to taking another big step: opening a retail outlet. We know how hard it can be to find what you need to make clothes today. Although crafters and quilters have a number of options, there are few local suppliers for those sewing clothing or costumes. Not everyone can make a trip to a major city to source a project, and online shopping doesn't work if you want to match a color or gauge the weight or stiffness of the fabric.

Located within the current Casaday facility, Ruby's Remnants and more will offer apparel sewers and cosplayers the materials necessary to bring their creations to life. Mr. Casaday named his first sewing machine Ruby, and to honor our founder, Ruby's will have one of his personal machines on display. Fabric, sewing notions, wigs, vintage and antique items, and upcycled artwork made from retired garments will all be available. Summer hours are 4-7 Tuesdays and Thursdays, and the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month from 12-4pm.

Costume rentals at the Casaday Costume Company are available by appointment only. The hours are Monday through Friday from 10:30 to 6, and we can be reached at (574) 393-4784 or at costumes@casaday.org. Connect with Casaday on our website at casaday.org, follow us on Facebook at casadaycostume, or on Instagram at casadaycostumecompany.