PORTFOLIO
ART DIRECTION & DESIGN
Smuin’s 2019/20 Season Brochure
Produced in-house. Sole credits for art direction, graphic design, and copywriting.
Smuin’s Fund for the Future Brochure
Trifold brochure promoting $10m Capital Campaign.
Produced in house. Sole credit for art direction, graphic design, and copywriting.
Smuin’s 2017/18 Season Brochure
Produced in collaboration with 300FeetOut. Winner of Silver Dave Award (2017).
COLLATERAL DESIGN
Posters, postcards, and rack cards for Smuin’s 2017/18 Season.
MULTIMEDIA
Short videos promoting Smuin’s seasonal events and campaigns.
WRITING SAMPLES
Interview articles written for Smuin’s behind-the-scenes blog.
“Choreographer Helen Pickett is a force to be reckoned with. A self-described rebel, Pickett moved from San Diego to train at the San Francisco Ballet School before joining dance pioneer William Forsythe’s Ballet Frankfurt. Pickett credits Forsythe as a major shift in her artistic career. ‘Forsythe [did not only tell the dancers what to do,] he asked for opinions. I wanted to be in on that conversation. I didn’t want to be told what to do.’”
“‘I like to challenge myself every time I choreograph a new piece,’ creator Nicole Haskins said. With each new work, she considers many variables including the type of music, different groupings of dancers, and even a potential narrative. A natural planner, she organizes structure of a dance long before rehearsals begin. ‘I am very comfortable using shapes and mathematics in dance. I used to mark out spacing for dances using old cassette tapes!’ After she creates a foundation of patterns, Haskins values the input of her dancers in rehearsal: ‘I trust that I can have a general overview, but I let the dancers actualize the steps within their own bodies.’”
“Emmy award-winning House of Cards composer Jeff Beal shared how he discovered his love for composition: ‘I think every musician has a few “A-ha!” moments in their life. I remember playing Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, a great ballet with very difficult music. Right then it felt like the heavens opened up, and I knew I had to be a composer. I loved that the music was telling a story.’ After creating film scores for 25 years, Oasis marks Beal’s first venture into composing for dance. He said, ‘This is the first ballet I’ve ever composed! I told Helen, “I want to come over to your team now!”’”
“Following an incredible nine-year career of dynamic dance performance and expressive movement with Smuin, Susan Roemer will step away from performing and focus on her growing career as a costume designer. With her keen artistry and tremendous skill as a dancer, she’s performed many key roles in Smuin productions over the years, and is a favorite of audiences and critics alike. ‘There’s an almost defiant star quality in everything she dances,’ said Allan Ulrich of the San Francisco Chronicle. ‘You can’t take your eyes off her.’”