Course for hair & make-up artists

PRACTICE

BASIC UNITS

Cosmetology

Elisabetta Casale, cosmetologist, make-up artist

• Types of skin and skin appendages
• Product characteristics and label reading
• European Cosmetics Regulation
• Types of products and methods of use

Color scheme and face shapes

Rossella Migliaccio, image consultant

• Color theory
• The chromatic elements of the complexion and the typologies
• Face types and shapes
• The armochromia method

Anatomy and artistic drawing

Silvia Cerioli, mock up artist

• Elements, proportions and symmetries of the face
• Construction of eyes, nose, mouth
• Chiaroscuro and color
• Creation of face charts

Creativity and planning

Industry professionals

• Creativity between inspiration and method
• Creativity techniques
• Project management basics
• Iconographic research and moodboard design techniques

CHARACTERIZING UNITS

Corrective and beauty make-up

Mara Casasola, make-up artist

• Skin analysis and skin tones
• Face shapes and elements
• Beauty and corrective make-up
• Photographic and editorial make-up
• Bridal make-up and hairstyle
• Age make-up

Theatrical make-up

Sofia Motta, make-up artist

• Epochs
• Ballerina make-up
• Ethnic make-up
• Fancy make-up
• Characteristic make-up
• Aging
• Make-up of opera characters

Film and television make-up

Industry professionals

• Make-up for TV and social media
• Make-up for the cinema
• Film hairstyles

Airbrush

Daniele Pacini, make-up artist

• Use of the airbrush in the beauty and bridal sector
• Creative techniques
• Introduction to body painting

Introduction to wigs and hairpieces

Gherardo Filistrucchi, wigmaker

Federica Domestici, wigmaker

• Type of materials
• Basic construction technique
• wigs and hairpieces
• Differences between theater and film wigs

Hairstyling

Camilla Passavini, make-up artist

• Introduction to hairdressing
• Ballerina hairstyle
• Historical hairstyles
• Types of folds
• Wig application
• Artistic hairstyle wigs

Special effects techniques

Roberto Mestroni, Cristina Davite, makeup effects artists

• Introduction to special effects
• Extemporaneous effects
• Bondo and the creation of latex prostheses
• Shell application
• The beard hair 

Practical exercises

THEORY

GENERAL CULTURE UNITS

History of make-up

Donatella Mondani, makeup artist

• The evolution of makeup over the centuries: historical, social and technical analysis 

Guide to listening

Fabio Sartorelli, musicologist

Vito Lentini, dance historian

• Introduction to the history of dance and opera
• Analysis of operas and ballets from the repertoire

History of costume and fashion

Industry professionals

• Introduction to the history of costume
• New trends in fashion and makeup: analysis of some fashion shows

Introduction to musical theatre

Andrea Massimo Grassi and Filippo Toppi, coordinators of the Teatro alla Scala Academy

• Introduction to the arts, crafts and languages of entertainment

Lighting technology

Emanuele Agliati, lighting designer

• Lights and shadows in the theatrical, photographic, fashion and television fields and their interaction with make-up

SELF-ENTREPRENEURSHIP UNITS

Contractual matters

Gianfranco Daniele, business consultant

• Types of businesses
• Characteristics of self-employment
• The VAT number: from the estimate to the invoicing (fiscal aspects)
• Business management elements for starting your own business: business plan and budget

Workplace security

Sergio Tasca, security sector trainer

• Legislative notes
• Rights and duties of the various company figures
• Work equipment, movements and postures
• PPE and emergency procedures in workplaces

Self-entrepreneurship

Rita Cannata, HR specialist

• Types of skills
• Analysis of your soft skills and the reference market
• Elements of problem solving 

Professional orientation

Umberto Bellodi and Marco Pasotti, coordinators of the Teatro alla Scala Academy

• CV formats
• Active job search and its channels
• Effective management of a job interview
• Planning in professional activity

Business English

Polly James, native speaker teacher

• The lexicon of beauty
• How to create make-up tutorials for social media
• The curriculum in English
• Simulation of a job interview in the language

Interpersonal skills

Rita Cannata, HR specialist

• Assertive communication
• Negotiation techniques
• Effective ways for teamwork

Personal branding

Sara D. Orlandi, cultural project manager

• Building a personal brand
• Types and characteristics of social networks
• Marketing for self-promotion

The course trains a professional capable of:

• conceive and design an artistic look starting from the most popular trends and knowledge of the history of art, make-up, costume and fashion;
• create make-up and hairstyles suitable for different occasions (from beauty to theatre, from cinema to events), knowing how to best match cosmetic and make-up products to the characteristics of the face and complexion;
• build special makeup and hairpiece effects;
• work within a team, using assertive communication techniques, demonstrating problem solving skills and, if necessary, using negotiation to manage the relationship with the work team;
• start and promote your business on offline and online communication channels.

In order to be admitted to the course, it is necessary to pass a selection test as follows 

• written test;
• two practical tests: one for makeup and one for hairstyle;
• motivational interview.

Two selection sessions are planned in 2025, held in Milan at La Scala Academy facilities (via Santa Marta 18):

FIRST SESSION

Approximately between May 12 and 16; the deadline to apply is on April 30, 2025.

SECOND SESSION

Approximately between October 6 and 10; the deadline to apply is on September 26, 2025.

The convocation, with precise date and time of the selection, will be sent by the Students' Office at the end of the application period.

Those who apply for the May session and pass the selection will receive a discount on the tuition fee. Those who do not pass the first session can reapply for the second, losing the right to the discount.

Full details of the selections can be found in the course brochure.

Register and/or login to the Academy enrollment platform at iscrizioni.accademialascala.it.

The system will ask for personal data and will propose the "Terms & Conditions", a document that must be signed and re-attached and which contains important contractual details, such as the right of withdrawal.

After completing this step, you will be asked to enter the attachments for each course, detailed in the brochure (if you have not already downloaded it, do so now!).

Then, you will be asked to pay the fee, either by credit card or by online transfer directly from the same registration screen (banks in the MyBank circuit are accepted: check first that yours is there).

At the end, a pdf will be generated summarising all the data entered, which must be signed and attached.

At this point, the enrolment is complete and goes directly to the Students' Office.

Candidates residing outside the European Union must submit by the start date of the lessons - if they pass the selection - the documentation required by law and by the provisions of the Italian Public Security Authorities for non-EU citizens (request to obtain a residence permit for study purposes).

Scholarships. Students who pass the selection process and whose ISEE (Equivalent Financial Status Indicator) does not exceed 20,000 euros may apply for a scholarship to cover all or a part of tuition. The application process will be communicated in a separate announcement delivered to all those passing the selection process. 

Merit loans and student loans. The La Scala Academy has established conventions with credit institutes to provide other forms of financial aid covering tuition and/or lodging to all students in good academic standing.

For further information, please contact the Teaching Office: segreteria.didattica@accademialascala

The Academy has agreements with accommodation, restaurants, theatres, cinemas and other shops, from which students can benefit - by presenting their ID card - or even candidates for selection, by presenting their full registration.

Once the course has been completed, the student can join the Alumni Accademia La Scala community, a platform that provides the Academy's alumni with a range of services, including job offers, continuing education content, event proposals, conventions and reserved discounts - as well as fostering relations between alumni.

The Academy is offering a preparatory workshop for this course, which will be held in-person during the week of July 7-11, 2025 and is being advanced on March 8 and 9, 2025 in a weekend format, with a reduced schedule.

Those who obtain a grade of 29/30 or higher at the end of the weekly workshop will be admitted to the course-if they intend to attend it-without having to take the selections. The opportunity does not apply to the weekend workshop formula.