Born: 28 October 1920, United States
Died: 1 November 2006
Country most active: United States
Also known as: Kathrina Klotz
The following is republished from the Library of Congress. This piece falls under under public domain, as copyright does not apply to “any work of the U.S. Government” where “a work prepared by an officer or employee of the U.S. Government as part of that person’s official duties” (See, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101, 105).
Florence Klotz was born Kathrina Klotz on October 28, 1920, in Brooklyn, New York. Little is known about her childhood. Klotz graduated from the Parsons School of Design and soonafter went to work painting fabrics at Brooks Costumes, where she met Irene Sharaff, costumer for Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The King and I. Throughout the next ten years, Klotz served as assistant costumer to Sharaff, Joan Personnette, Miles White, and Lucinda Ballard before starting her own career.
Klotz’s most noteworthy design credits were for productions by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, Stephen Sondheim, and director Harold (Hal) Prince. Prince and Klotz worked on sixteen productions together, including Kiss of the Spider Woman (1993), Show Boat (1994), Follies (1971), A Little Night Music (1973), Pacific Overtures (1976), Grind (1985), and On the Twentieth Century (1978), among others. In addition to theater, Klotz also costumed three films, two of which were adapted from previous productions. Reuniting with Hal Prince for A Little Night Music (1977) and Something for Everyone (1970), the pair worked together on the only two films Prince directed. Pacific Overtures was recorded in 1976 at the Winter Garden Theatre for distribution on Japanese television.
Over her nearly thirty year career, Klotz won six Tony Awards for Best Costume Design for Follies, A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures, Grind, Kiss of the Spider Woman, and Show Boat. She was also honered with five Drama Desk Awards for Follies, Pacific Overtures, On the Twentieth Century, Kiss of the Spider Woman, and Show Boat. Klotz passed away at her home in Manhattan on November 1, 2006, at the age of 86.