Stuart Little Final Poster

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For the final poster image of Stuart Little I had to reduce the size of Snowbell and move him into the background. Stuart remained standing right where he was and I made Snowbell’s head as large as I could in the negative space to the left of Stuart.

The title looks much better against a bright blue field so it can be read from a distance. I kept the chalky typeface for the credits.

Staurt Little is running right now at the Shakes. It involves some puppetry and a brightly colored set.

The vertical poster was adopted for a horizontal format in the promotional video. Since I am always rushing to finish the posters on time, I don’t paint behind foreground layer. In this poster Stuart is the foreground layer, that meant I didn’t paint the parts of Snowbell that could not be seen. When Stuart is removed, a Stuart shaped unpainted negative space appears on Snowbell’s fur.

This year I am re configuring every poster as a horizontal image as well so that such strange unpainted areas don’t happen when the poster is dissected and pulled apart for various uses.

The jealous gaze of Snowbell now is softened to curiosity or concern. Since he is reduced in size the threat is also softened.

Stuart Little runs through April 27, 2025. Tickets are $20.

Second Pass at Stuart Little Poster

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This was the second pass at the Stuart Little poster for the Orlando Shakespeare Theater. The show is being performed through April 27, 2025. Tickets are $20.

For this poster I focused on the scene where Stuart captains a tiny radio controlled sail boat in Central Park in NYC. I used to live in NYC and this lake was a welcome get away from the hustle and bustle of surviving in the city.

The scene takes place in early morning as the sun rises in the east. I know that because I am familiar with the warm light.

It should be noted that this is a quick color sketch which I assumed might get rejected. Because of that I don’t refine the brush work very much. Working fast like this, I often prefer to leave some of those panicked brush stokes rather than refining and polishing every aspect of the piece.

I am thinking this because I am working on the final stages of the posters for next season. Part of me wants to refine everything, but I resist and only work on areas that have changes or adjustments. I always want to have the poster look like it was made by hand. The best way to do that is to leave hints of the human touch.

I like the look of Stuart in this sketch but once again he is the sole focus of the poster. I wanted to include at lead one other character as well.

My research turned to Snowbell who is jealous  of how well Stuart fit into the family where he was once the sole prince.

Stuart Little First Concept Thumbnail

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This is the first Stuart Little Concept I did for the Orlando Shakespeare Theater poster. I did similar thumbnails for all the posters for the season. The idea was to see if it made sense to have all the posters use the same limited palette.

This concept was built around a scene in which Stuart gets caught in a washing machine. To save time I used a photo of the Brooklyn Bridge in the background. If I wanted to finalize the idea of course I would sketch and paint everything.

The idea didn’t fly. I needed to incorporate more characters for the final poster. the idea of having all the posters with the same color palette also didn’t fly. There was no enthusiasm for the limited palette when I showed the concepts at the first approval meeting.

I kind of liked the chalkboard title but I later abandoned that for a much bigger and bolder look to the lettering. The one good thing about this fast approach is that I could get ideas out fast and with more ideas on the table I could pick and choose what was working best.

Doing these children’s show posters are always a fun departure from all the other shows of the season which are usually more serious. With the kids shows I could fall back on a more cartoony look. This sketch is a rare case where I didn’t even bother to add shadows to the character. Of course if the idea had legs I would have refined it much further.

I am right now in the throws of doing posters for the next season at the Shakes and it is amazing how many changes and adjustments each poster goes through. At the last approvals meeting three of the poser ideas were approved and I have about 4 posters to change and adjust. A sloppy sketch like this is like me throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks.

First Ad seen of Stuart Little Poster Art

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This is the first ad I found featuring the art I created for the Orlando Shakespeare Theater production of Stuart Little. The show runs through April 27, 2025. I need to arrange to get to the theater and sketch the actual show.

I watched the Stuart Little movie on YouTube for inspiration and found so many illustrated renditions of Stuart. Designs started with thumbnail sketched and then I did multiple versions of the poster before this one was ultimately picked.

I remember that Snowball the white cat at first was immense, with his cat face filling up most of the poster while Stuart was small and diminutive. When I reversed that size dynamic the poster started to fall into place.

I find it fascinating how many steps it takes to reach a final look for the poster art. On rare occasions I hit it out of the park on the first try but that is rare. Being flexible and rolling with the punches is what makes illustration challenging, and so much fun.

By working digitally, changes could involve just turning off a layer to eliminate a character and then start over while the rest of the poster remains intact.

I am in the heat of the moment making changes to the posters to next season. Three posters were approved in the last meeting but four have more adjustments that need to be made. The goal is to know that every change can and will make the poster even better.

One play was dropped to be replaced by another and I had one day to come up with a new concept. That is when things get really fun and exciting!

Welcome to Matteson

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Welcome to Matteson is being performed at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater through March 29, 2025. Written by Inda Craig-Galván, the show is a welcome dinner for a couple who just moved to the suburb of  Matteson from the Cabrini projects in Chicago. The Cabrini projects are notorious for crime Regina and Cory Baker (Kerri Hollingsworth and Walter Riddle) make clear that there are also many positive aspects to the community from which they came.

Throwing the welcome party are Patricia and Gerald Griffith (Danja Le’Chelle’ and Christopher James Murry.) Gerald and Cory hit it off talking abut water heaters and plumbing and it turns out they came from very similar backgrounds.

Patricia is it turns out was a resentful host since she didn’t really want to see people from the projects settling in her neighborhood. Regina was taking communications courses and she and Patricia definitely didn’t get along. If anything can go wrong with a welcome dinner party, it does, although there are moments of absolute playful joy. The couples are trapped in their perceived places in the social class structure. I had read the script when I was working on the poster for the show, by the performances from this stellar cast truly brought the show to life. I love getting to see the seed which germinates into a stellar production.

The play was playful and fun while also having moments that are absolutely shocking. The audience would actually gasp. I would highly advise you get your tickets and see it for yourself.

Cabaret

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The Orlando Shakespeare Theater (812 E Rollins St, Orlando, FL) is presenting a cutting edge production of Cabaret. This show is more topical than ever in today’s heated political environment. People like to pretend that the worst isn’t happening but ignoring the problem empowers the problem. The parking lot to the Shakes was completely packed, so I exited the parking lot and found street parking nearby.

The opening scene in the show had Clifford Bradshaw played by Easton Curtis on a balcony taking note or sketching as snow fell. The play was based on the writings of Christopher Isherwood who was an American who was in Berlin Germany right before WWII and he considered himself a human camera. I am fond of that concept. On stage, the Emcee, played by Shane Bland was warming up the crowd with a classic flair. In the talk back after the show I learned that Shane was the one Jewish member of the cast which made his role all the more poignant.

The play follows the colorful performers in the Kit Kat club and their crazy and comical numbers stood as a stark contrast to the rising tide of hateful politics in Germany. The fast and furious romance between Clifford and Sally Bowles played by Anastasia Remoundos showed how romantic escape is critical and practical in crazy times. Sally’s flamboyant attitudes were her form of absolute denial to the reality all around her.

During rehearsals a Cultural Coordinator was brought in to be a support system to the cast. The play covers some very disturbing themes and it is hard to wear that cloak and then not take it home. There was a sabbath dinner for the cast early in the rehearsals. The cast felt a responsibility to hold a mirror up to the truth. Some actors playing German soldiers had to wear Nazi Swastikas on their arm bands. The arm bands were sequestered right until the moment before actors got on stage. Once the scene was finished the arms bands wold once again be locked away. The same was true with the patches that marked people as deviant. The one Jewish star had to go to Herr Schultz, played by Mark Gray Miller. The other cast got to choose which patch best suited their character. The show was a polarizing experience for the entire cast. It is unfortunately very relevant. One piece of advice from one of the actors rang true, “Be kind to yourself and others.”

Cabaret performances continue through March 2, 2025. Trust me, this is a show you do not want to miss. Tickets start at $40.

 

Cabaret Final Poster

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This was the final version of the Orlando Shakes Cabaret Poster. The title was moved down covering the dancers. I suspect a decision was made the the poses of the dancers was too suggestive. The Joe Masterhoff credit then took top billing.

This poster probably went through more changes than any other I have done. This is actually quite an interesting solution and not one I would have considered on my own. The title became a form of censors stamp which makes perfect sense considering the political climate post WWII in Germany.

The Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920 where, inside the Kit Kat Club, a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. It’s an astonishing and eye-popping tale that has renewed resonance in today’s political climate. Tickets are available online.

Cabaret: First Pass

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This was the first pass at the Orlando Shakes, Cabaret poster. Actually the broken bulbs came a bit later when there was a request to distress the title. With this first pass I also had a layer that showed a swastika in the shadow of the spotlight. The adverse reaction to that was so strong that I threw out the layer.

The paint application on this sketch is rather sloppy. I was working fast to get the idea down.

What mattered most was the title which closely followed the example of the title used for the movie.

Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920’s where, inside the Kit Kat Club, a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. It’s an astonishing and eye-popping tale that has renewed resonance in today’s political climate. Tickets are online.

Cabaret: First Ad Seen

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Cabaret was the most challenging poster designed for the 2025 season. That is because it was too brazenly sensual. The splits leg poses shown in this ad were part of the initial design, but after several passes the Cabaret title came down to try and cover the hips of the dancers.

I am rather sad to see that the chair legs were lifted upwards in this add making it seem like the dancers are floating. That might be an interesting effect if that was my intention. I am sure most people don’t notice that the chair legs to don touch the stage.

The Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920’s Kit Kat Club, where a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. It’s an astonishing and eye-popping tale that has renewed resonance in today’s political climate.

The show runs between February 5, and March 2, 2025. Tickets online.

Henry VI Part 2: She Wolf of France, Final Poster

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The final painting for Henry VI Part 2: She Wolf of France involved painting actress Roberta Emerson to replace the generalized woman I had painted.Head shots are rather bland so we searched for reference of her looking much more angry.

Some brush stroked were cleaned up but otherwise I kept the bold look of the sketches.

The play runs from January 8 -19, 2025. Tickets are $35.

Orlando Shakes continues the exciting saga of Shakespeare’s Henry VI trilogy! A love triangle, a plot to murder, and a rebellion are all part of this thrilling tale – centered on the Wars of the Roses! In this raw, “Bare Bard / Original Practices” production, Orlando Shakes’ actors will perform the play with less than 40 hours of rehearsal, no designers, and no director – just like the acting companies of Shakespeare’s time! Don’t miss this exciting next chapter in Orlando Shakes’ popular Fire & Reign Series.