Dramatic and atmospheric print marketing materials (including a title treatment) for STC's 2022 production of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice: emphasizing the director's vision of the piece as a social justice drama instead of a Shakespearean comedy.
This production of The Merchant of Venice leaned heavily into the play's concern and complicated history of anti-Semitism. Because the marketing copy for the play described Venice as "a city steeped in the ills of antisemitism, racism, misogyny, and homophobia," I felt that a gritty and dark background with hints of gold—a nod to the play's famous line, "all that glitters is not gold"—would be the right visual cue and texture needed to convey director Arin Arbus' specific vision.
Photos by Henry Grossman.
