Fordham Theatre Key Art
About
The Fordham University Theatre Program is highly regarded as one of the most outstanding BA theatre training programs in the country, with graduates such as Denzel Washington, Patricia Clarkson, and Betty Gilpin. After graduating Fordham, I had the distinct honor of being asked back to design the theatre programs’s season art. Previously, Fordham had relied on basic graphics that were specific to each play and not the season as a whole. I saw a huge opportunity to create a brand that could communicate the season’s over all theme and build a distinct design system for to utilize for the individual posters and other promotional assets.
One of the most challenging aspects of this project is that the key art must be created before anyone is cast, before sets are designed, before costumers are sewn. The imagery had to be both neutral yet very specific to the script.
My Role
☁ Conceptualization
☁ Creative direction
❑ Graphic Design
✒ Illustration
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE AN AMERICAN?
Fordham Theatre’s mainstage season asks, What Does It Mean to Be an American?. National acrimony was at an all-time high after the 2016 presidential election, and became even worse after white supremacists and neo-Nazis staged a rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Fordham Theatre’s director Matthew Maguire wanted audience to walk away from the plays more willing than ever to talk with one another, pick up the mantle and engage with others who they might otherwise be tempted to shut out.
It was important for the seasonal poster to represent this question through its imagery, without previously know the theme, and become a conversation starter in its own right.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE AN AMERICAN?
Fordham Theatre’s mainstage season asks, What Does It Mean to Be an American?. National acrimony was at an all-time high after the 2016 presidential election, and became even worse after white supremacists and neo-Nazis staged a rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Fordham Theatre’s director Matthew Maguire wanted audience to walk away from the plays more willing than ever to talk with one another, pick up the mantle and engage with others who they might otherwise be tempted to shut out.
It was important for the seasonal poster to represent this question through its imagery, without previously know the theme, and become a conversation starter in its own right.
THE WAY WEST
by Mona Mansour
directed by Caroline Wood
The Way West revolves around a family matriarch who is an absolute believer in the pioneer spirit of the country, and who maintains a steadfast faith in self-reliance even as her world disintegrates. The character will resonate with those who don’t believe the country needs a social safety net.
THE WAY WEST
by Mona Mansour
directed by Caroline Wood
The Way West revolves around a family matriarch who is an absolute believer in the pioneer spirit of the country, and who maintains a steadfast faith in self-reliance even as her world disintegrates. The character will resonate with those who don’t believe the country needs a social safety net.
MAGNOLIA
Written and directed by Regina Taylor
Magnolia, an adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s Cherry Orchard set in Atlanta in 1962, touches on issues of both race and class, and features a newly elected mayor who has overseen the construction of a wall between a black and a white neighborhood.
MAGNOLIA
Written and directed by Regina Taylor
Magnolia, an adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s Cherry Orchard set in Atlanta in 1962, touches on issues of both race and class, and features a newly elected mayor who has overseen the construction of a wall between a black and a white neighborhood.
Macbeth
by William Shakespeare
directed by Dawn Akemi Saito
Befitting its tradition of performing at least one play that is a classic, the season will conclude with Macbeth, whose focus on the abuse of power speaks for itself. It dramatizes the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake.
Macbeth
by William Shakespeare
directed by Dawn Akemi Saito
Befitting its tradition of performing at least one play that is a classic, the season will conclude with Macbeth, whose focus on the abuse of power speaks for itself. It dramatizes the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake.
Beautiful City
by George F. Walker
directed by Elizabeth Margid
Beautiful City follows the story of a rapacious landlord trying to take over a whole neighborhood. The neighbors, in their fight to stop him, enlist the help of a woman who has magical powers.
