The first pass at creating a poster for Becoming Othello for the Orlando Shakespeare Theater involved a simple split screen portrait. On the left the actress smiles in a warm inviting portrait and on the right she is depicted in a severe cold portrait as the murderous Othello. Debra Ann Byrd is a female actress who embraces playing the male lead in Shakespeare’s Othello. This play is about that journey. Debra wrote and performed this solo show.
Othello is a noble Moorish general whose life is destroyed by his ensign, Lago, who manipulates him into believing his wife, Desdemona, is unfaithful. Consumed by jealous rage, Othello murders Desdemona, only to learn of Iago’s deception. Consumed with grief Othello then commits suicide.
With such a dark story line, my portrait poster lacked any discernible action. I liked the classy serif typeface I had picked for the title but that might miss the mark as well for such a bold dark story line. This poser image left me feeling uneasy. I think it has to do with her smile on one side and serious neutral expression on the other. Perhaps a neutral expression across the board would have worked better but now is not the time for second guessing since this concept was not approved. The challenge was in making the two sides of the portrait the same yet dissimilar. It was a fine line to walk.
Since a verb would be needed, my mind turned to the moment of murderous rage in the play. That moment would end two lives in a pointless tragedy. If that moment could be captured then that would catch a viewer’s attention.