The Seagull Study Guide (12MB) - Goodman Theatre

Picture Perfect
BY ELIZABETH MORK
A picture is worth a thousand words, yet which ones?
Are these words of love, peace, or sorrow? The theatre is
thick in language both written and spoken. How does a
theatrical production make its image known outside of
the stage?
Every play done at the Goodman receives its own unique
image. This signature artwork publicizes the production
and illustrates qualities of the play itself. Traveling
through the Goodman’s archives will unleash a world of
imagery which documents the wide range of material for
each and every season. A unifying trademark of Goodman
Theatre advertising is the use of identifiable human
features, such as faces or hands. This hallmark remains
consistent throughout productions ranging from King
Lear to Animal Crackers.
Examine the current landscape of Goodman Theatre
imagery. The Seagull sets itself apart from the collective
of human hands, smiles, and shining eyes. Robert Falls’
production image portrays nothing human at all, but
rather the bon es of the symbolic seagull. What exists
now has been born out of multiple attempts to capture
the essence of the show.
Prior to the x-ray artwork, The Seagull image consisted of
a silhouette of a live bird in flight bleeding a string of red
rose petals. When presented with this initial attempt,
Falls specified he wanted something grittier; an image
that got to the bones of the production. Graphics did just
that by unveiling the ever present skeletal structure of
the bird. The x-ray image illuminates the internal by muting
the everyday exterior. Striking, memorable and inventive,
The Seagull image speaks for this novel production.
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