Music sets the stage for theatre company rebrand

For most national arts companies, there is a logical home venue, a landmark of sorts to help attract attendees and build awareness. But, that model may preclude an audience beyond those already interested in theatre from attending.

The National Theatre of Scotland took a different tack, developing a theatre company with no primary space, no home venue. Instead, it performs in local theatres, village halls, at schools, in forests and beyond. This innovative approach has also influenced its artistic style, leaning toward the inventive and persuasive. It won international awards and acclaim, for instance, for its production of Black Watch, a Scottish play focusing on the early stages of the Iraq War.

Now, the theatre has a brand to match its personality. Manchester-based brand firm Music has used the theatre’s itinerant nature as inspiration. The new logo incorporates a frame that provides the stage for the wordmark – rendered in an all-caps, monochrome typeface. The logo’s strength will help the theatre company to build awareness and recognition across Scotland and the UK.

Associate creative director at Music, Oliver Wigglesworth, says, “We were delighted to be appointed by the National Theatre of Scotland to refresh their brand. We were excited by their unique positioning as a ‘theatre without walls,’ and by the eclectic nature of their performances – although that became our biggest challenge. Our emphasis was very much on creating a framework that allows all communications to both reflect the individual nature of each performance, and give the brand a constant thread in order to be recognisable as a whole.”

The brand’s merchandising implementations are typical of a modern theatre company, but the visual identity really comes to life through the use of photography. Artistic, intriguing imagery is used as a means of communicating about the theatre’s productions and positioning. Combined with the monochrome logo, it’s a captivating result.

“The National Theatre of Scotland is committed to being a theatre for everyone and to stage productions wherever audiences can be found. Working with Music on our brand refresh has enabled us to have a consistent visual identity across the wide variety of the productions we tour throughout Scotland and further afield,” Charlotte Gross, the National Theatre of Scotland’s director of audience & media said. “This is a key factor to help develop brand recognition and audience loyalty and we are very much looking forward to continue to work with this clear and elegant branding across all our marketing formats.”

The brand will roll out throughout the 2019 season.