Jolly Good Musicals (JGM) is an independent musical production company based in Sydney.
It specialises in quirky and offbeat shows, encouraging audiences to come have a jolly good time.
It specialises in quirky and offbeat shows, encouraging audiences to come have a jolly good time.
As a start-up, JGM required theatre branding to both align with the professionalism of other production houses in the city scene and distinguish itself as a unique and joyful new company.
It was up to us to produce a show-stopping identity.
Branding
Jolly Good Musicals draws its name from the company’s trio of founders: Jeremy, Gabrielle and Michael. Inspired by this theme, the identity expands on the idea of a magic three, using the three pillars of musical theatre — music, book and movement — as its basis.
Both full and acronym logos combine elements of musical notation, changing emotions and shifting motion to reference music, book and movement in a simple, yet memorable way — figuratively ending on a high note.
A triptych visual device evolves the dynamic logo and establishes the basis for communication design. Windows serve as a frame for photography and imagery, providing a platform for individual shows to shine, while remaining recognisable as a JGM production.
While the hero constellation echoes the movement of the logo typography, the rectangles form a flexible device that can be moved according to the emotional journey of each production, or as needed for photography.
Typography is geometric, friendly, timeless and approachable. Distinctions in heading case and font weight guarantee a clear hierarchy of information, while maintaining a cohesive brand look.
The colour palette follows a simple formula: pair one light colour with one dark colour. Either colour can be the more prominent background, while the other is used for text and additional graphic elements. With 36 possible combinations, JGM has a variety of options to make each production distinct.
JGM’s brand identity provides a simple platform to create beautiful, cohesive promotional collateral that still honours the uniqueness of each show. Its variety of colours and layouts suit the company’s vision of creating a bright and fun brand that encourages everyone to enjoy the theatre.
We want to say another big thank you for the amazing work you produced for us. We cannot express how happy we are! The JGM team will forever sing praises for BEING in three-part harmony and at the top of our lungs.
We were trying to tackle the difficult task of establishing a new and clear brand, while still leaving room for each show to have its own creative direction. Our shows and their themes and designs will vary quite significantly, but we still needed a way for them to be identified as a JGM production. JGM wanted to present a company that was playful, fun and spirited, while still having an uncomplicated and direct design. BEING took this and came back with a fully realised identity.
BEING took the time to understand not only what we wanted to represent, but what theatre and musicals mean to us. Their enthusiasm was infectious, and the entire process was collaborative and genuinely enjoyable. Communication was constantly open, and every little detail had a clear connection to the overall theme. In short, working with BEING was a jolly good time.