Ben Nye Stage Blood Original Zesty Mint, 236 ml

Ben Nye Stage Blood Original Zesty Mint, 236 ml

Ben Nye Stage Blood Original Zesty Mint is a classic theatre blood based on hydrolysed corn starch, used worldwide in theatre, film and SFX. The colour is bright arterial red with a slight yellow tint: the colour of fresh, oxygen-rich blood. It is safe in and around the mouth thanks to its fresh peppermint flavour, and stays fluid throughout the entire scene. The 236 ml bottle is the right size for longer productions, theatre seasons and SFX training.

• Bright arterial red with a slight yellow tint: the colour of fresh blood
• Fresh peppermint flavour, safe for use in and around the mouth
• Stays fluid for extended working time (does not dry out)
• Based on hydrolysed corn starch, paraben-free
• Washes off skin with warm water and soap; test on fabric before use

What is Ben Nye Stage Blood?

Stage Blood is a classic from the theatre circuit, developed by Ben Nye Makeup in Los Angeles. The formula is based on hydrolysed corn starch with water, propylene glycol and peppermint flavour. This allows the blood to drip and flow naturally while staying fluid throughout the entire scene. Perfect for live work where blood needs to actually flow.

The flavour and formula are designed for use in and around the mouth. For vampire effects, blood from the corner of the mouth or a bitten lip, this is the blood that performers can actually hold in their mouth without an unpleasant taste.

Why do pros choose Stage Blood?

The colour is specifically calibrated to fresh, oxygen-rich blood. The bright arterial red with a subtle yellow tint reads as real blood on camera and under stage lighting, without any colour correction in post. Choose this size when you need to repeat blood effects throughout an entire production season or multiple rehearsals without constantly restocking.

Because Stage Blood stays fluid, its behaviour is predictable: drops run, pools stay wet, smears spread just like real blood. For drying effects like congealed blood or older wounds, you would choose a different type of blood.

How to use Ben Nye Stage Blood

Apply Stage Blood directly from the bottle or pour it into a dispensing dish. Three commonly used techniques:

• Dripping and running: dab with a brush or tip the bottle at an angle, letting gravity do the work for realistic drip behaviour on skin or wound builds.
• Spattering: use a Ben Nye Full Splatter Brush or the smaller Mini Splatter Brush for targeted blood spatters on skin, clothing or set dressing.
• In the mouth: take a sip or dispense with a capsule. Do not swallow, but the mint flavour is comfortable to hold briefly for vampire or bite wound effects.

Build up effects in thin layers: a first layer of blood, then work targeted areas with a second layer for depth. Combine with Ben Nye Thick Blood for thicker, congealing blood passages or with Ben Nye Fresh Scab for blood crusts and older wounds.

Pro tip: for a vampire bite wound on the neck: dab a first layer of Stage Blood on the wound, let a second drop run down from the bottle along the neck and dab a small pool at the corner of the mouth. The 236 ml bottle sits well backstage for longer productions and holds enough volume for repeated scenes.

Setting and removal

Stage Blood stays fluid. Setting is neither needed nor appropriate. For removal, work in stages:

• Skin: warm water with mild soap, blotted clean. For stubborn residue use a Wonder Towel; finish with a good skin soap. On fair skin a faint pink shadow may remain briefly and will fade within a few hours.
• Clothing and fabric: rinse immediately with cold water. Then wash at 30 degrees Celsius with a stain remover. Test on an inconspicuous area first. Ben Nye states the blood washes out of most fabrics, but offers no 100 per cent guarantee.
• Set dressing and props: warm water with soap works in most cases; test on porous materials first.

What can you use it for?

• Theatre and stage productions with live blood effects
• Halloween looks and horror themes (vampires, zombies, bite wounds)
• Haunted houses, scare mazes and horror events
• Cosplay and character work with fresh-blood effects
• Vampire fangs, mouth bleeding and all scenes where blood needs to come in or around the mouth
• SFX training and make-up schools, where Stage Blood is a standard teaching material

Contents

1 bottle of Ben Nye Stage Blood Original Zesty Mint, 236 ml, with a pour spout. Bright arterial red, peppermint flavour.

Ingredients: Hydrolyzed Corn Starch, Aqua (Water), Propylene Glycol, Aroma (Flavour), Phenoxyethanol, +/-: CI 16035, CI 42090. Not tested on animals.

Other sizes and variants

Stage Blood Original Zesty Mint is also available as a 29 ml bottle for kits and rehearsals and as a 946 ml bulk bottle for SFX schools and large theatre productions. The 236 ml bottle is this size.

For dark, oxidised blood (older wounds, dried-blood looks) choose Ben Nye Dark Blood Aged & Oxidized 29 ml. Looking for a blood that actually dries for longer-running shots? See the drying blood category. For the full range of bright red fake blood: browse the light red fake blood category.

Compliant with EU Cosmetics Regulation 1223/2009. Product photos are taken under professional lighting. Colours may differ slightly depending on your screen settings.