New Marvel Universe Live! production ‘Age of Heroes’ has Redlands ties

From the fantastical Savage Land to New York City and beyond, Guardians of the Galaxy join Marvel Heroes Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Man, Black Panther, Hulk and Black Widow in a race to save mankind in Feld Entertainment’s newest production, Marvel Universe Live! Age of Heroes.

The show debuts at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario July 13, with seven shows through July 16, then heads to the Honda Center in Anaheim, July 20-23.

And making this production a standout will be the 100-plus true-to-life cinematic-like costume designs by Redlands-native, Mark Koss.

“There’s texture, there’s dimension, some costumes have been hand-painted to make it look like they’ve actually been through war and some costumes even have 10 different fabrics in the design,” said Koss, costume designer for Age of Heroes.

“The lore of Marvel and its heroes and villains are all so distant to us that I wanted to bring them to life.”

The new show brings Spider-Man, the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy Star-Lord, Gamora, Groot, Rocket and Drax , to join forces with Doctor Strange for a legendary battle to recover the Wand of Watoomb, an ancient source of mystical powers, before it falls into the hands of Loki.

The superhuman forces of Iron Man, Thor, Black Panther, Hulk and Black Widow will unite in clashes that pit student against mentor, sister against sister and brother against brother. Spider-Man and Wasp’s dynamic aerial stunts along with Captain America’s daring motorcycle skills will also be on display in the ultimate race against time to save mankind.

Koss said he gravitated toward designing more theatrical costumes with three dimensional qualities to “help make the characters more believable as living things.”

“I want audiences to think that these heros are actually trying to save our lives. I want Marvel to be real.”

Koss, a working costume designer for 10 years now, touts his passion for costume design to his early years as a student at Redlands High, where he started as an actor in the school’s Theatre Arts Company. He eventually became fascinated by the costumes in the productions and went on to design the costumes for a production of “The Boyfriend,” his senior year.

“I thank (teachers and the company) for letting me learn and giving me opportunities,” he said. “I’m very passionate about theatre education. If it wasn’t for them, I don’t think I’d be where I am now.”

Shows for “Marvel Universe Live: Age of Heroes” at the Citizens Business Bank Arena run 7 p.m. July 13 and 14; 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. July 15 and 1 and 5 p.m. July 16. Tickets start at $25 and be purchased at the box office, 4000 Ontario Center Parkway, calling 800-745-3000 or visiting ticketmaster.com.