Author: Emily Nixon

I had so much fun performing in Exit This Way as I had never performed in a postdramatic or meta-physical show before. Postdramatic theatre “focuses on the deconstruction of a dramatic character … [it] also examines new work in its relation to the breakdown of dramatic conventions” (Lehmann, 2010, 1). Our show was postdramatic as we did not have investable characters. When I became Rosie the audience visually witnessed the change of me being Emily and then becoming Rosie by putting on a coat. The audience could not believe I was Rosie as I had just been myself seconds before. Our show was based on blurring the lines between process and product. In the performance we constantly broke the fourth wall as to highlight that escapism is something you can only do for short sections of time. This could be witnessed when I as Emily told Laura’s fairy-tale. It began as a lovely story with beautiful imagery and viscerally stunning but ended abruptly when Hannah and I broke away from the imagery to give the harsh reality.

 

Once Upon a Time (Odonnell, 2017)

Laura in her Castle (Odonnell, 2017)

They took her far far away (Odonnell, 2017)

My favourite scene to perform in was the fantasy section. Show night was the first night I did not laugh the whole way through it. I was having the best time on that stage. When devising and rehearsing that scene I was slightly worried that the audience wouldn’t get our sense of humour. Oh how I was wrong! Hearing the laughs from the audience added a new dimension to the performance due to the fact that the comedy was amplified by the energy.

When a Damsel is in Distress (Odonnell, 2017)

                                  I can’t see (Odonnell, 2017)

    Woah! It’s Cheryl the Alien (Odonnell, 2017)

What made our performance successful was the connection the company had together on stage. Our show was by no means perfect and had its mistakes but it didn’t matter. It added to the comedy but also I knew that the other members of Fragment on stage with me had my back. Although we weren’t an improvisation group we could improvise on the spot to cover for a fellow actor when an issue arrived. This made our performance live and real in the moment.

The future of Fragment Theatre Company is feasible but would need some changes. To be able to tour around England we would need to downscale our set as it would be too expensive to hire and transport scaffolding from venue to venue. This would not be a problem as we can adapt more towards the DIY theatre aesthetic which can already be seen within the props for our show. I would also choose to market our show with a new poster which promoted us a comedy.

Props Day (Jarrold, 2017)

          The making of George (Jarrold, 2017)

Ben working hard! (Jarrold, 2017)

  Working in Fragment Theatre Company has been an absolute pleasure. I have worked with nine talented people and learnt so much about myself and theatre from them. Now to look forward to the future. This is not goodbye Fragment Theatre Company but a see you later!

 Fragment Theatre Company (Odonnell, 2017)

Works Cited:

Jarrold, R. (2017) Ben working hard!

Jarrold, R. (2017) Props day.

Jarrold, R. (2017) The making of George.

Lehmann, H. (2010). Postdramatic theatre. 1st edition. London: Routledge.

Odonnell, S. (2017) Fragment Theatre Company Lincoln: SO Photography.

Odonnell, S. (2017) I can’t see! Lincoln: SO Photography.

Odonnell, S. (2017) Laura in her castle! Lincoln: SO Photography.

Odonnell, S. (2017) Once upon a time. Lincoln: SO Photography.

Odonnell, S. (2017) They took her far far away. Lincoln: SO Photography.

Odonnell, S. (2017) When a damsel is in distress. Lincoln: SO Photography.

Odonnell, S. (2017) Woah! It’s Cheryl the alien. Lincoln: SO Photography.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    The most popular of our marketing strategies came from Brodie Atkinson. It was the idea to post on our social media platforms pictures of Pip Strickland in famous photos and the viewers would have to find her in the picture. This was an ongoing joke within the company as Pip would disappear and we would have no clue where she had gone. So we wanted to share this joke with our followers. Here are a few of my favourite ‘Where’s Pip Wednesdays’:

 

Collage of Where’s Pip Wednesday (Wahl, 2017)

 

 

We had great feedback from this and would constantly be told how excited they were for the next instalment. It makes me sad that is coming to an end!

Work Cited:

Wahl, S. (2017) Collage of Where’s Pip Wednesday.

 

Although social media is a key element of my marketing strategy it is not the most important. Printed advertising is essential to successful marketing and this made me strive to create a poster and flyer of a high standard. It is important to remember when creating promotional materials “to keep … advertising simple and relevant to the product, and to make sure it is effectively targeted” (Hill, O’Sullivan and O’Sullivan, 2003, 195). 

In a meeting with our director Joe Turner and assistant director Brodie Atkinson we discussed that our poster needed to illustrate the sadistic side to escapism but have hints of the fun elements that are within our show. For me it was essential to have a person in the poster as more people are attracted to a poster where you can see a face. As the production was called ‘Exit This Way’ I was keen to find an interesting backdrop for the shoot. As our lighting designer Ben was researching warehouses as a stimulus for lighting, I wanted to utilise this for the poster. So I went on a tour around Lincoln to find warehouse styled spaces with a fire exit sign.

 

 Poster Set Options 1 (Nixon, 2017)                                                                                                      Poster Set Options 2 (Nixon, 2017)                                                                                              Poster Set Options 3 (Nixon, 2017)

The location I decided to use was a car park as the lighting created a warehouse effect and also created a sense of unease which the limbo section in our show also generated. I chose to use Rob as the figure in the poster as he was the presenter character who was serious, focussed and created the world of escapism for the “contestants”.

                                                                                                                                                                    Poster Option 1 (Nixon, 2017)

 

                                                                                                                                                                    Poster Photo Option 2 (Nixon, 2017)

These images did not come out as I had hoped due to the cars taking away the focus of Rob and it also didn’t show the fun elements that consisted in our show. I decided to do a reshoot for the poster and changed location to the top floor of the car park and brought in Brodie who was the other presenter in the show. I also added a cake, balloon, pen, and headphones to show the four areas of escapism in the show.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poster Photo Option 3 (Nixon, 2017)     Poster Photo Option 4 (Nixon, 2017)                        Poster Photo Option 5 (Nixon, 2017)

 

 

This is the final poster:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exit This Way Poster (Fragment Theatre Company, 2017)

 

 

At first I found it very difficult to make the poster as I had to teach myself how to use Photoshop. Luckily I had a strong image that did not need editing or any effects layered on the image. I decided to use a simple font as the image was the most important element to the poster. The fancier the font the less effect the image had.

At the start of the process our show had a more serious tone but as the show progressed it veered more towards a tongue in cheek style comedy. Although the poster still represents our show it steers more towards the undertones of the sadistic elements. If I could have created the poster at the end of the process it would highlight more that our show was a comedy.

Another marketing strategy we used was flyers! This is a great marketing method as “face-to-face contact is made… you physically hand out” (Layton Turner, 2006, 193); the flyers having personal contact with your audience. The more warm and friendly you are the better the reputation of your company. This will lead people to wanting to come see your show as they have a good first point of contact with you. For the flyers we again used the poster image to keep a consistent image going throughout all the marketing materials.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fragment Flyer Side 1 (Fragment Theatre Company, 2017)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fragment Flyer Side 2 (Fragment Theatre Company, 2017)

 

 

Works Cited:

Fragment Theatre Company (2017) Exit This Way Poster

Fragment Theatre Company (2017) Fragment Flyer Side 1

Fragment Theatre Company (2017) Fragment Flyer Side 2

Hill, E., O’Sullivan, C. and O’Sullivan, T. (2003). Creative arts marketing. 2nd edition. [ebook] Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. Available at: http://lists.library.lincoln.ac.uk/items/EB051E65-5BD4-50A0-63E2-4A766F27A8E8.html?referrer=%2Flists%2F2F819BDC-9061-08EC-AD65-4A8AF646E284.html%23item-EB051E65-5BD4-50A0-63E2-4A766F27A8E8 [Accessed 31 Mar. 2017].

Layton Turner, M. (2006). The Unofficial Guide to Marketing Your Small Business. 1st edition. New Jersey: Wiley Publishing, Inc.

Nixon, E. (2017) Poster Photo Option 1

Nixon, E. (2017) Poster Photo Option 2

Nixon, E. (2017) Poster Photo Option 3

Nixon, E. (2017) Poster Photo Option 4

Nixon, E. (2017) Poster Photo Option 5

Nixon, E. (2017) Poster Set Options 1

Nixon E. (2017) Poster Set Options 2

Nixon, E. (2017) Poster Set Options 3

So today to boost our likes on Facebook we held an event on the University of Lincoln Campus. We were giving out free cakes and sweets for a like on Facebook. The day consisted of music, cakes and rain … lots of rain. Although the weather was against us we still managed to achieve our goal of 300 likes. The whole company got involved and used our happy spirits and umbrellas to entice people to like us on Facebook.

Cake for Likes Marketing Event (Nixon, 2017)

 

The reason for doing this event was to expand the range of people who liked our Facebook page. Before today the majority of our followers were friends and family. By targeting other students around the university it meant we could get new followers from different courses who could spread the word about our company gaining us a new audience. Although the wind and rain limited the number of people around campus we still managed to reach our target of 300 likes.

Thanks to the rest of Fragment Theatre Company for standing in the freezing cold rain with me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Cold and Tired Fragment Theatre Company (Nixon, 2017)

 

Works Cited:

Nixon, E. (2017) A cold and tired fragment theatre company.

Nixon, E. (2017) Cakes for likes marketing event.

 

In today’s society it’s very hard to escape from social media and the impact it has on everyday life. Social media “simply, is text, words, pictures, video and the like created with the intention of sharing” (Evans, 2012). The popularity of social media  means that it is a great marketing device as it is free and easily accessible to a large number of people and this “community of supporters can … help to build your business” (Evans, 2012).

We have chose to set up accounts on three different social media platforms: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Each of these platforms offer different advantages. Instagram is for sharing pictures and videos and as we are a visual group it seemed like a perfect match. We also chose to set up twitter as this was the easiest way to connect with other theatre companies and the venue in which we were performing. By following and retweeting these other companies it is helping us to gain more followers as we are targeting people who have an interest in theatre and the arts. Our Facebook page is our main social media platform as it is an official company page. On this page I have invited people from the University of Lincoln and people with an interest in theatre to follow us. This process allows people to accept the invite to follow our page meaning they have an interest in what we are doing and want to see what we do as a company . This is a successful marketing strategy as it means we instantly have a fan base.

 

Facebook Post (Nixon, 2017)                                                                        Twitter Post (Nixon, 2017)                                              Instagram Post (Nixon, 2017)

The great thing about the three social media platforms is that they are accessible on mobile phones. This an advantage for two reasons:

1.The marketing team can update social media throughout the day meaning we can be live from rehearsals and update our followers immediately.

2.Our followers will get notifications straight to their phones and can see our updates regularly throughout their days.

Social media as a marketing tool also has the support from the Arts Council England. They say that: “social media really comes in to its own: it capitalises on our desire to be involved” (Artscouncil.org.uk, 2017). I feel confident using social media as one of our main marketing strategies as it reaches our target audience of young adults and students. 

Works cited:

Artscouncil.org.uk. (2017). We Are Here | Arts Council England. [online] Available at: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/read-all-blog-posts/we-are-here [Accessed 11 Feb. 2017].

Evans, D. (2012). Social Media Marketing: An Hour a Day. 1st ed. [ebook] Indianapolis: John Wiley & Sons. Available at: https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=HCmlrmiMOxoC&dq=quotes+about+social+media+marketing&source=gbs_navlinks_s [Accessed 21 Feb. 2017].

Nixon, E. (2017) Facebook Post.

Nixon, E. (2017) Instagram Post.

Nixon, E. (2017) Twitter Post.