Brief Explanation

Despite its long history, The New Theatre had a very low profile. Show posters would be woefully inconsistent and there was no sense of personality coming through. The new brand needed to stand out in a crowded cultural sector. It also needed to get people to sit up and pay attention to the strong, proud culture that has been the theatres foundation for 80 years. With limited budget the new brand would need to be easy to manage and cost effective to roll out.

The Brief

The New Theatre has a history of political controversy, relentless passion and a unique collective spirit. And yet, 80 years since its formation, the theatre’s brand was out dated, inconsistent and tired. Our brief was to make Sydney’s oldest theatre, feel ‘new’ once again.

How the final design was conceived

At the centre of the new identity is a simple ‘NT’ monogram. It combines the three initial letters of The New Theatre into one simple mark and is completely rotatable. This allows interesting juxtapositions of messaging. It also gives a sense of the revolutionary spirit that defines the theatre. The new system is bold, simple and flexible and ties together lots of different brand touch points.

Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market

The rebranding program has completely revitalised The New Theatre. It has united and energised their culture by instilling a sense of pride and purpose into everyone involved with the theatre. Following a sold out opening night and increased ticket sales, it looks as though 2012 will see New Theatre finally harness the true potential and power of their brand.