There is a lot that needs to be fixed here. Currently, this is the structure:
| Season Information » | Clicking this top menu item takes us to a bizarrely narrow list of shows. The design looks accidental. |
| Events | This is just a grid of upcoming events (including Homecoming for some reason). A page like this could be a calendar, and/or part of a tickets page. As is, it looks like the robot is broken. it’s also worth considering whether the design of these event boxes should include a tag to indicate whether the project is fully produced (mainstage) or produced under more limited circumstances. This would allow us to make decisions about where each series (mainstage, emergent. off the grid) appears, as well as letting that designation be more visible to visitors. |
| Auditions | This is one of the places where it can be confusing which audience we’re addressing. Information about the season is very public-facing, but the audition process is restricted to UCI students. |
| Season Dramaturgy | Dramaturgical resources are useful to the production team, to students, and to other patrons. However, as its own menu item, it may be hard to see how it connects. Perhaps the season page could have a “learn more” link connected to each show, where cast, dramaturgy, venue, calendar etc. can be accessed. This is the way most professional theatres do it. |
| Current Production Season | This is a link to the exact same page as “season information” |
| Previous Seasons | If we upload select shots to each show page after it closes, we’ll have a ready made archive of the show including pictures, cast bios, etc. |
| New Swan Shakespeare Festival | I think this is the right place for New Swan |
Tara suggests:
I think “Current Season” should be the top thing in the menu. (Or, as you have done it, Mainstage, Emergent, Off the Grid.) We should keep in mind that unless people are getting rights, we cannot list the Emergent/Off the Grid stuff. Nevertheless, even if we can’t put all the titles in, explaining what these series are makes them exciting, and makes us seem like we are doing lots of things for people who are looking into joining the department.
I really like the idea of an Artists section. Especially now that we don’t get programs that list, ahem, “the talent” which I find to be very weird.
The venues page is nice…and also maybe an extra we could add later? Doesn’t seem super crucial for me. (And also seems to be a little bit covered via the utterly awful “Facilities and Technology” page. Which…could we just cut it?)
I love the idea of having an actual visual archive from past seasons. People also often do research into how major theatre program’s seasons have changed over time. We don’t get included in those kinds of surveys if the information isn’t easily accessible!
I wonder if Student Groups should be their own main menu tab? I think its nice to elevate them, and then give them each a page?
Also, check out these possibilities: