A Theatrical Poster Exhibition in Rhinebeck

by Jay Blotcher, February 18, 2007

Venturing into Rhinebeck can be a dicey affair; you risk being run down by wealthy weekenders focused on conspicuous consumption and reeking attitude. But there’s a nice diversion on Montgomery Street this month. “Center’s Edge” is an exhibition of theater posters for productions from The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck. They hang in the hallways of the second floor of the Montgomery Row building.

David Forman, a longtime actor at the center, and one of the artists on display here, squired me around on Saturday. He shrugged off praise—“They’re easy and fun, sort of dopey in a way”—and explained that he poached images from the Internet and doodled with Adobe Illustrator, squeezing in time during his morning coffee to create the work. But serendipity can produce wondrous results. Consider his poster for the Sondheim musical "Assassins." (I blogged about the center production here, recently.) Forman initially toyed with two pistols pointed barrel to barrel and delightedly discovered that they formed heavy brows and menacing eyes. By adding an old-time moustache to complete a face, Forman had crafted an “A” to spell out the musical’s title. Laid out in red against a black field, this poster is an affecting combination of simple but powerful graphics and atmospheric color.

Also notable is Forman’s posters for 2006’s "Death of a Salesman," which employs the grotesque Goya-esque image of a bent and dissipated man, originally drawn by Jo Mielziner, the set designer for the original 1949 production. Forman is proudest, however, of a poster for the 2004 Center production of the courtroom drama "Inherit the Wind," the play about about the Scopes Monkey Trial. Lampooning the current controversy over evolution dominated by the religious loonies known as creationists, Forman depicts the judge, defending attorney, and prosecutor as monkeys. Apparently, backwards thinking is not solely the provenance of the religious right; some fellow actors in the Center production protested Forman’s satire.

Other artists featured in the exhibit are Joe Morgan, Richard Prouse, and Sid Judge-Avery. Morgan’s posters for "The Medium" by Giancarlo Menotti (recently deceased and closeted in obituaries even though he was the lover of fellow composer Samuel Barber for many years) and the adaptation of Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men are distinctive. The former offers the photographic image of a beautiful woman as seen through a curtain; the latter is an illustration of a bucolic scene by a river where friends George and Lennie sit quietly. However, in the foreground is a cowering rabbit, suggesting the tragedy to come. Equally affecting is a poster for "The Night of the Iguana," the graphics sensuously and menacingly green while capturing the clash between religion and primal passion in the Tennessee Williams play.

Prouse uses colored pencils to devastating effect, especially in his poster for "Macbeth," where a tree slowly emerges to the eye as a hand drips blood. Prouse designed this and posters for "The Tempest" and "Romeo and Juliet" for The Center’s Young Will series of student-produced Shakespeare productions. Judge-Avery, a member of Rhinebeck Unplugged Student Theatre (RUST) has one piece in this show: a poster for the community theater chestnut "Harvey," about the amiable Elwood P. Dowd and his friend, a six-foot, white rabbit. Judge-Avery recreates the Great White Way of Times Square, each glowing marquee boasting some variation on the show in lights. A clever rendering, even moreso when considering the tender age of the artist.

If you are a theater buff or a graphic-arts enthusiast—or both—a visit to “Center’s Edge” is a delightful and rewarding way to spend an hour or so in Rhinebeck. Admission is free.


“Center’s Edge: Posters from The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck" is on view through March 17 at Montgomery Row, second level, 6423 Montgomery St. (Route 9), Rhinebeck. (845) 876-6670; www.montgomeryrow.com.

Jay Blotcher, a former Manhattanite, began his Ulster County life as a weekender in 1996. He and his partner, Brook Garrett, now live in High Falls. Jay is a regular Chronogram contributor and has written for the New York Times, the Times Herald-Record, the Citizen, InsideOUT, and Ulster Publishing’s Almanac.