The Bigger Printing Company have produced large-scale PVC banner displays for Dreamshed Theatre’s production of Toad of Toad Hall, which opened on Thursday 16th December 2010.
The banners, which filled the 4.5m wide x 3m high stage at Cheltenham’s Playhouse, were designed to represent an enormous book that is operated by the actors during the performance. The set design was inspired by Dreamshed Theatre’s campaign to promote greater literacy amongst children.
Commenting on his decision to use PVC banners, the set’s designer, Peter Stone, said: “The use of this banner material is a new and exciting step from traditional materials. I chose PVC for its durability and the quality of the printing. The result is a photographic illustration of mammoth proportions on a robust material that is also light in weight.”
Bigger Printing produced the banners by scanning Peter’s A3 and A4 illustrations at a high resolution and then printing the images onto five panels. This method of production proved to be far more efficient than traditional hand painting, reducing the time of production from weeks to days.
On the banner production, Peter said: “Ordinarily a project like this would take three weeks of full time work and although the results are pleasing, the images are not durable enough for a tour. I had none of those constraints or pressures with the banners from Bigger Printing.”
Peter continues: “The production is an exciting project and my brief that it should 'look magical', will be enhanced by the colourful images that appear throughout.”
To find out more about The Bigger Printing Company please click here.