we got the poster and postcard design for Expect Theatre’s AWAKE today – it’s designed by Randal Boutilier of 12thirteen design. The posters will be 12 X 18 and the postcards will be postcard sized. Before I begin, you should know that the Fringe is a very poster-y event – everyone has posters, I’d venture to say it’s one type of festival where you MUST have them, and they MUST stand out from the crowd.So this isn’t a “to poster or not to poster?” blog post. We’re postering and this is what we’re working with.
Here’s the online version – the ones that’s emailed to all your friends and family.
There are many reasons I think this piece is awesome.
- Fantastic image. Absolutely gorgeous and completely relevant to the production.
- Fantastic logo – which I’ve been using to make a lot of connected marketing collateral – the “other stuff”. I’ll show those to you at a later date. Also completely relevant to the production when you take a closer look at the individual cutout images in the wing.
- The play description is compelling – it tells you exactly what you are in for without giving it away, so to speak. Excellent tagline as well – “This Is Real” is straightforward and compelling. And true – it lives with the play description.
- For a poster with this much information, it’s still clean. The pertinent information is readily visible. The funders are credited without the dreaded “logo soup” effect. Even if it’s sent to you as ‘small’ – the big stuff is clear; Title, Image, Dates, Fringe. It pulls you in for a closer look. This will translate easily to other collateral including ads, web banners, colour changes, black and white, spot colour, you name it. It’s a marketer’s dream. Why?
- Because you could crop up this poster for virtually anything, and even though that means some information will go missing, the main stuff is still there – you’d still know how to get a ticket to the show. It’s a beautifully put together puzzle of information, and each piece gives you a bit more knowledge about the production. Each section stands alone, yet is part of the bigger picture.And finally:
- Everyone who has worked on this show is on here. Many posters/flyers credit the performers, and sometimes the designers, and many don’t credit anyone at all. This piece shows the average person just how many people it takes to make theatre ‘go’. It’s not for ego, it’s the fact that very talented people who are very good at what they do worked on this. It recognizes the truly collaborative nature of the work that we do. It instills a sense of ownership and pride in the work – your name is literally on it. It’s also nice as a bigger picture look at our industry for those reasons.
Congrats to 12thirteen and Expect. Gorgeous stuff.
Sue Edworthy Arts Planning 