Yes& Forges New Brand Story and Identity for Virginia's Tony Award-Winning Signature Theatre

Nov. 19, 2024

For more than three decades, the Tony Award-winning Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA, has built a local and national reputation for its musical theatre productions, especially the works of Stephen Sondheim. Emerging from the pandemic, Signature was ready to reassert itself in the lively and competitive Washington, DC theatre scene. 

But Signature’s brand, while strong and innovative at the time it was created in the mid 2000s, became somewhat of a standard look and similar voice to local and national professional theater peers in recent years. With the appointment of its new Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner leading the company alongside longtime Managing Director Maggie Boland, Signature decided the time was right to undertake a brand refresh in order to to better reflect what the company represents today and where it will be in the future. Signature partnered with creative marketing agency Yes& to sharpen its story and provide it with a more contemporary and cohesive design system. 

The strategy that shaped the re-brand emerged from the most extensive audience research initiative Signature had ever undertaken. The four-month process included a brand audit, a digital ecosystem audit, staff and board workshops, quantitative and qualitative research with audiences and donors, and peer and aspirant analysis of theatre organizations in the U.S. and London. 

Yes& created a positioning that enabled Signature to go beyond marketing the category of live theatre or the appeal of a particular show. The new positioning was centered on the power of proximity: at Signature, the stage is never more than 10 rows away (about 45 feet) from your seat and there’s no curtain line to hold audiences at a distance. It’s one of the most magical, intimate and artistically demanding performing spaces in America—where audiences and performers feel and see that they are in community with each other. 

Research also affirmed that Signature Theatre was unusually “customer obsessed.” While Signature held itself to the highest standards of artistry, audiences appreciated how it strived to make theatergoing feel easy and inclusive.   

Yes& summed up the brand and its offer to audiences with the tagline, “The best place to experience musicals in America. By any measure.” 

The new logo translated the brand strategy visually by joining the words “Signature” and “Theatre” with the common center letter, A. This overlap represents connection and collaboration: between audience and performers, between performers and physical space, and between the performers themselves.

The new design system matches this excitement with vibrant, saturated colors and custom letterforms that reflect the spectrum and originality of Signature productions. Texture plays a key role in the brand identity, borrowing from the “street style” of traditional wheatpasted show bills. The subtly gritty look communicated that Signature was a place that lowered barriers between audiences and a memorable experience.

Signature Theatre’s Director of Marketing, Jennifer Buzzell said:

“Yes& took the time to get to know us and really understand Signature’s vibe and ethos from all perspectives – audience, staff, artists, and community. It was through this detailed work that they absolutely nailed who Signature is, and importantly what Signature strives to be.”