Project: The Bushnell Top Hats & Trapeze Event and Branding
Client: The Bushnell Performing Arts Center
Role: Strategic Advisor, Art Director, and Designer to internal teams
Based on a romantic drama set in a traveling circus that was included in this performing arts center’s Broadway season, the Top Hats & Trapeze fundraising event design is placed squarely in the 1930s time frame, lending an air of faded brilliance to all of the circus-themed components. Although skewing more to the glitter than the sawdust, the signs of deterioration are there; the gilding… burnished but hand-worn; the tassels… colorful but frayed; the silk… luxurious but slightly moldy. Conjuring up the spectacle of death-defying daredevils, strapping and scantily clad performers, fearless animal trainers, and a menagerie of creatures from far-flung locales, event attendees will be transported to a world of thrill and skill, grit and glamour. The gala identity, applied across a multitude of pieces — from large, animated digital banners to table numbers to the announcements — was inspired by the exciting, seemingly dangerous, hyperbolic atmosphere of the circus.