World-class performances in a small-town music hall

The Chandler Center for the Arts is the cultural heart of downtown Randolph, VT (population 4,800). The intimate and grand performance spaces in the 1907 stone music hall host more than 50 performances a year — from folk music to theater, indie songwriters to classical ensembles, community variety shows to fine art exhibitions. All of this artistic and cultural goodness is managed by just a handful of paid staff.

I connected with the folks at Chandler through board member Janet Watton; Janet and I also collaborate on PoemTown Randolph, the sister celebration to PoemCity Montpelier. I began by designing Chandler’s annual donor appeal, and quickly expanded into designing mailers to advertise the season’s shows, program guides, newspaper ads, and Chandler’s signature long, narrow performance posters. These materials present Chandler shows as the high-caliber performing arts and music events that they are.

Recently, Chandler hired a new director, who is shifting the organization’s focus to appeal to a younger audience. I’m shifting the branding of Chandler’s materials to have more of a live-music-venue vibe than a classical-music-concert vibe, while maintaining ties to the brand work we’ve done over the past several years. I’m proud to be helping this small-town gem step into the next phase of their identity.