24 Jan BOOM Motion: Setting Sights on Quantum Theatre’s “The Gun Show (Can we talk about this?)”

On the heels of the acclaimed run of “Chatterton” at Trinity Cathedral, the most successful production in their history, Quantum Theatre is ramping up their pre-show marketing for the second show of their 2018/2019 season – “The Gun Show (Can we talk about this?)”

When the season’s show choices were selected months ago, nobody could have foreseen the tragedy of the Tree of Life shooting in October. Mounting a show that purports to not take a side in the gun control debate, but instead offers a chance for both sides to “have a conversation” is ambitious, bold, and just what Pittsburgh has come to expect from Quantum Theatre.

It also presented BOOM with a challenge to rework some of the original promotional artwork that depicted a handgun pointing at the viewer into something a bit less topically volatile, but still provocative and maintaining the impact of the show’s subject matter. BOOM reworked the show’s design vocabulary to feature a mountain of bullets, and included the subtitle “Can we talk about this?”

As we participated in the first pre-show photoshoot at photographer Jason Snyder’s Lawrenceville studio with actor Andrew William Smith, a moment presented itself while Andrew was running his lines for the camera. Away from a full audience, a shorthand :30 second excerpt from the show emerged that we were lucky to capture. Intensely authentic in its spontaneity, everyone involved saw the value in turning it into our first social media “teaser trailer” for the live show that starts on February 8 at the Carnegie Library in Homestead, the first of three venues that will host the production. Another Quantum moment not to be missed. Visit their site for tickets and more information.