MAC BETH
OU Drama Fall 2023
Marketing / Branding
As Marketing Coordinator for the OU School of Drama, it was my sole responsibility to come up with the branding & marketing campaigns for our production of 'Mac Beth' by Erica Schmidt.
The process began on August 15th, when the director and I met to go over the concept of the show, poster ideas & vibes, images, etc... The design process took me about a month and a half to really get to a solid point on how I wanted this show to look and feel.
About the show: “After school, seven teenage girls convene in an abandoned lot to perform a play. They drop their backpacks, transform their uniforms, and dive into a DIY retelling of Macbeth. As the girls conjure kings, warriors, and witches, Shakespeare’s bloody tale seeps into their reality. MAC BETH recontextualizes a classic text to expose the ferocity of adolescence and the intoxicating power of collective fantasy.”
In addition to my design meeting, I compiled a list of phrased & ideas to help me create the world of the show. These notes/ ideas would assist me whenever I needed a refresher, or some more ideas as I developed the MAC BETH brand.
Some of those notes included: primary colors: red, yellow, black, and white; dark version of burn book from mean girls; graffiti walls; grungey-pop rock- teen girl angst; Bad Cinderella vibes but evil Cinderella ; 3 witches ; beheading; abandoned yard, etc...
This was a huge asset for allowing me to find the world and style.
Going into finding colors / textures I knew I wanted to use a rustic gold vibe.
Initially, I started out with a more brown-based style, but wanted to amplify this to be more gold looking in order to emphasize this new take, which ended up complimenting the selection of textures & backgrounds I chose, which were along the lines of black brick, red brick, grunge, etc...
View some of the backgrounds / textures below that were used to amplify the world.
Below you'll see different examples of my typography using this effect, using SERNES DEMO & URBAN BRUSH ZONE.
After sorting out the fonts, refining the style, and establishing the overall look, it was time to create the main key art/logo for "MAC BETH." Before showcasing my initial drafts (available at the end), my exploration predominantly revolved around typography rather than a comprehensive visualization.
As I finalized the visual tone, as seen above, the idea struck to use the three witches from the show as the main visual. It is imperative to note, for those unfamiliar with the plot, that these witches play a significant role in the dramatic climax by orchestrating Macbeth's demise.
The goal was to convey a sense of sabotage and overpowering without giving away the ending. Two standout images, displayed below, really resonated with this concept.
Now, these were just the basics. For every show, I always like to think outside of the box and really develop at least one post (Since the marketing time is very limited) that really puts the audience into the world they are about to experience.
The 7 high schoolers in this show, are all apart of 'THE MACBETH CLUB'.
This is when I came up with using the verbiage "Join the Macbeth Club' rather than "Come see the show". This really put our audience into the world of the play and really made them want to "join". Further down, you'll see post-show engagement / show results, and this post helped us get to 4/6 shows being sold out.
Next up, is one of my favorite parts of marketing a show is always the promotional shoots.
This lets the audience really see a glimpse into the world aside from other graphics / promo and gets them excited and super hyped for performance week. These promotional shoots have been done before, but this was our highest engaging audience since beginning these in 2021.
We publish these to hype up our cast & boost ticket sales. No better way to really get excited by an exclusive first look series.
Check out just a few of the images & sentiment below.
Other social sentiment from other posts can be found below.
Our audience was extremely excited about this show in particular. These are just a few highlights of reactions throughout the marketing period.
• Collage Graphics: These were intended to showcase the impact of words and expectations of females and what impacts their actions around them. To themselves, they are the center of their own world, but on the outside, others will try to drag them down, and do what they can to hurt one another. The power these characters all hold are intoxicating, while the line between their real life and diving into this blood fantasy quickly blurs. It seems organized, but really it all blends.
• Graffiti Quote Cards: These were intended to provoke how quickly power can overcome us. Graffiti is known to be considered as vandalism. It's illegal, but it's always done to make a point. As once graffiti is done, it cannot be erased. Similar to the acts these girls perform. You can try to cover it up, but those actions will always be remembered.
Below, as mentioned before, these are just a few of my original drafts.
These are not completed drafts, but rather thought provoking drafts that helped me lead to where I ended up. You'll see I really wanted to stick with the red, black, yellow vibe along with a crown image. It was all just a matter of figuring out the right combinations of these ideas & assets in order to get to where I wanted to be.
And, last but not least, the final engagement & show results from this process (October 9th to November 20th).
The marketing process was about a month and a half, but my full branding/ discovery process ended up being about 4 months.
Engagement wise, this was one of our highest engaging audience. By the end of this process, I could really tell how excited the audience was for this new bloody take.
Selling out 4 out of 6 shows was a huge victory, especially after taking the time to craft this world and how I wanted this show to be perceived, alongside the help of the director of the show, Dr. Kate Busselle.
What I learned from this process:
• Experimentation & Adapting: Embracing experimentation and risk-taking in design was a key takeaway, illustrating that innovation often stems from pushing boundaries and trying new approaches to capture the audience's attention in a crowded market.
• Understanding the Audience: The experience highlighted the significance of
user-centric design, demonstrating that understanding the audience's preferences and tailoring the visual elements to meet their expectations significantly enhances engagement and interest.
• Iconography & Symbolism: Creating meaningful iconography and symbolism became a cornerstone of finding the world of the show. Design elements needed to go beyond aesthetics, incorporating symbols and icons that resonated with the show's themes, subtly conveying additional layers of meaning to the audience.
