The forthcoming arrival of an internationally-renowned dance show celebrating an iconic album has prompted a Norfolk social enterprise to get creative.
Print To The People has been commissioned to create retro posters to promote Pepperland, which was conceived to mark the 50th anniversary of the Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album and which visits Norwich Theatre Royal on April 23-24.
Using the show’s stunning imagery as a starting point, the team have created and produced the artwork featuring Sixties-style lettering and design using authentic production methods to fully reflect the era when the Beatles album was released.
Based in Norwich, the artist-led social enterprise is ten years old this year and is dedicated to using traditional print processes for all their work.
Jo Stafford, of Print To The People, said it was a very interesting project. She said: “We were honoured that the Theatre Royal thought of us for this commission as it has been a brilliant project to work on. We have loved being able to take inspiration from the Sgt Pepper album era and use traditional production methods to make something that compliments the freshness of the show as well as showcasing its heritage.”
The poster is helping to promote Pepperland, which is coming to Norwich thanks to the Theatre Royal now being part of the Dance Consortium, a group of 20 venues which work together to find international companies and productions to excite, challenge, entertain and inspire their audiences.
Pepperland is presented by the Brooklyn-based Mark Morris Dance Group and features an original score by Ethan Iverson which mixes new arrangements of the likes of Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, With A Little Help From My Friends, When I’m Sixty Four and Penny Lane, plus six original pieces inspired by the album.
A mix of voice, saxophone, trombone, keyboards and percussion will aim to highlight the non-rock-and-roll elements of the music.
This will combine with the ingenuity, musicality, wit and humanity for which the company is known.
Some stunning brightly-coloured costumes and an innovative set will also ensure the piece is a feast for all the senses.
For Mark Morris, the album is very important because of the impact it had on popular culture. He said: “Beatlemania in the UK, and particularly in the US, was a pivotal event in the turbulent social and political semi-revolution of the late 1960s.”
“As a very young person, I was dazzled and confused by the music. I loved it and I loved The Beatles. Then, over the years, I lost touch and lost interest partly because of overexposure. When I was approached to participate in the commemorative project in Liverpool, I re-examined the recording and found so much of interest in it that I eagerly took on the big project of turning these very familiar songs into a music and dance show. Pepperland is the exciting result.”