Marketing For Drama Productions
By Cheryl Hanson, February 27, 2017
Grade Level
- High School
Category
- Summer Design Institute
Subject Area
- Arts
- Technology
Lesson Time
8 classes (45 minute) total-1 weekend for homework
Introduction
Students will investigate marketing principles of design to create their own poster for a musical production. The design process (defining the problem—getting ideas—making and prototyping—testing and evaluating)will be helpful with this project.
DEFINE-students will have to survey to define the target audience
DEFINE-Students will analyze the theme of the script to choose appropriate graphics for marketing
GETTING IDEAS-students will research prior productions for graphic and font possibilities to clearly communicate important information for production
MAKING AND PROTOTYPING-students will create posters using the Microsoft publisher program
TESTING AND EVALUATING-through a gallery walk, students will evaluate other students’ posters using a criteria based rubric
TESTING AND EVALUATING-students will evaluate their own poster design using a written reflection prompt
REVISING PROTOTYPES-students will revise their own poster to reflect any necessary changes to make the poster easy to read and understand
National Standards
Theatre
Standard 5.
Understands how informal and formal theatre, film, television, and electronic media productions create and communicate meaning
Level IV [Grade 9-12]
Benchmark 2 Articulates and justifies personal aesthetic criteria for comparing perceived artistic intent with the final aesthetic achievement
Knowledge/skill statement 1 Compares the perceived artistic intent with the final aesthetic achievement
Standard 3
Designs and produces informal and formal productions
Benchmark 3
Develops designs that use visual and aural elements to convey environments
Knowledge/skill statement1
Develops designs that use visual elements to convey environments
Theatre
Standard 3.
Designs and produces informal and formal productions
Level IV [Grade 9-12]
Benchmark 5 Conceptualizes and realizes artistic interpretations for informal or formal productions
Knowledge/skill statement 1 Conceptualizes artistic interpretations for informal or formal productions
demonstrating responsibility, artistic discipline and creative problem solving
Select career and avocational opportunities in theatre and describe the training, skills, self-discipline, and artistic discipline needed to pursue them
TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills)
Theatre
Expression Level II
- Examine cultural, social, and political aspects of a script to depict appropriately technical elements
- Concentrate in one or more areas of theatre production (acting, technical theatre, theatre management) demonstrating responsibility, artistic discipline and creative problem solving
- Select career and avocational opportunities in theatre and describe the training, skills, self-discipline, and artistic discipline needed to pursue them
Objectives
- Students will develop a survey that helps identify target audience’s response to marketing clarity and urgency
- Students will be identify the target audience for musical audience using specific descriptors
- Students will analyze scripts to communicate the theme for the musical and its’ audience
- Students will identify one specific theme using metaphor and images for the musical production Once Upon A Mattress
- Students will analyze marketing posters from previous productions of Brackenridge shows and national productions of Once Upon A Mattress
- Students will design a poster that includes all necessary information to market musical production
- Students will incorporate appropriate graphics and fonts to communicate chosen specific theme for musical production
- Students will evaluate all posters in terms of target audience, clarity, appropriate themed graphics, and aesthetic quality
- Students will explain personal graphic choices to exemplify their chosen theme/metaphor in their design poster
Resources
- Script copies of Once Upon A Mattress
- Microsoft Publisher Program
- Previous show posters-Little Shop of Horrors, Superman, Wizard of Oz
- Required information Handout #1
- YouTube video of Carol Burnette production of Once Upon a Mattress
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfHDRIYtAxM&list=PLB4916C604C051B39
Materials
- Spiral for notes
- 20 computers
- Color printer
- Jumpdrives
Vocabulary
Metaphor-a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is used to designate something else
Graphic-pictorial representation
Theme-implicit or recurrent idea; motif
Target Audience-the group you want to attract
Prototype-1st draft or version of a design
Procedures
Day 1:
Goal: Design a marketing poster for the fall musical production that communicates a specific theme through choice of graphic/image/font and includes all necessary production information.
Warm up (10 minutes)
Students will look at 3 previous musical production posters-Little Shop of Horrors, Superman and Wizard of Oz. Students will respond to journal prompt in their spiral.
Prompt:
What do the images tell you about the story of the production the poster is for? Which poster is the easiest to read and understand? What makes it the easiest to read and understand? Who is the target audience of each poster?
Students will share responses to prompt.
Design Challenge Introduction (10 minutes)
To help focus the design challenge, we will identify the “user” as being middle school thru high school students as well as adults. This is our target audience. Teacher will introduce the
coming assignment of surveying this target audience “user.”
The class will brainstorm closed survey questions that will be used to interview the “user.”
Day 2:
Reading Analysis & Discussion
(25 minutes)
Students will read aloud selected scenes from Once Upon a Mattress script. We will identify and discuss themes as we read.
Video and Discussion (20 minutes)
Students will watch selected scenes from the YouTube video version of Once Upon a Mattress. We will identify and discuss thematic choices the movie made.
Day 3:
Reading Analysis and Discussion (15 minutes)
Students will read aloud selected scenes from Once Upon A Mattress script. We will add to our analysis of themes and possible graphics that could work for the target audience identified.
Video and Discussion (15 minutes)
Students will watch selected scenes from the YouTube video version of Once Upon a Mattress. These scenes should help finish the script because we will not read the entire script.
Homework Assignment (15 minutes)
Students will revisit closed survey questions they brainstormed the first day and add to these in their spiral. They need to have a total of 5 questions that they will ask 10 different people from 6th grade thru 12th grade and 3 adu
Day 4:
Warmup (15 minutes)
Students will share results from survey interviews in small groups of 4. Each group will come up with a defined “user” that will be their target audience for the poster they will design.
Investigate and Research (25 minutes)
Students will use search queries to look at previous productions of Once Upon A Mattress online. Students should look for marketing posters of productions as well as pictures of the show itself.
Students will evaluate 5 marketing posters of other productions using rubric that their own poster will be evaluated on.
Closing (5 minutes)
Students will turn in exit ticket that identifies the metaphor/image they plan to use in their poster design. They will explain why they think this metaphor/image fits the theme and target audience “user” for Once Upon A Mattress.
Day 5:
Review (10 minutes)
Class will review Microsoft Publisher Program skills of cutting and pasting, inserting pictures from saved files, word art, etc.
Required Information for Poster Handout (5 minutes)
Students will go over all required information that must be included in poster design. (see Required Information Handout #2)`
Prototyping (35 minutes)
Students will prototype and design posters on computers using Microsoft Publisher Program. Students will save design.
Day 6:
Prototyping (35 minutes)
Students will finish designing posters and check to be sure they have all required information. Students will send finished posters to Hanson through email.
Self Evaluation (10 minutes)
Students will explain in written reflection how their own choice of images/graphics/metaphors best fits their target audience (see attached-Reflection Prompt #3).
Day 7:
Gallery Walk with Evaluation (40 minutes)
Students will engage in a gallery walk evaluating the other students design posters using the marketing rubric (see attached-Rubric #2).
Closing (5 minutes)
Students will vote on the design they think best fits the theme and target audience for Once Upon A Mattress. They will also write why they think that is the best.
Day 8:
Observations (10 minutes)
Discussion of student voting on best design. Students will get back teacher evaluation of their design with notes on revision for clarity and urgency.
Revision of Prototypes (30 minutes)
Student will revise design to reflect any teacher suggestions for change. Students will send finished 2nd version to Hanson through email.
lts.
Assessment
Students will engage in a gallery walk evaluating the classes’ design posters using the marketing rubric (see attached-Rubric #3)
Students will explain in written reflection how their own choice of images/graphics/metaphors best fits their target audience (see attached-Reflection Prompt #4)
Enrichment Extension Activities
Students could attend performances of community musical productions and compare marketing campaigns to experience of production.
Students could create and implement an audience response to marketing survey that they could give to night show audiences.
Students can investigate marketing careers in conjunction with our DECA group on campus.
Students can continue to use same design process to market future productions including children’s show and original improv style comedy show.
Teacher Reflection
Students needed more review of basic computer skills—saving to jumpdrive, sending as email, cropping art, using publisher program.
Need to review use of copyrighted material with students; they tended to use graphic material that they lifted from other production’s marketing. We would have to take more time to create completely original graphic material for posters.