On display

Poster advertising Anansi's Royal Quest at the Unicorn Theatre, 1983

Poster
1983 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Anansi, the creature seen in this poster image, is the Jamaican folkloric trickster spider man who has featured in several plays. Though he lies and cheats to get his way, he is the hero of numerous African and Jamaican stories. In 1972, the first Jamaican style pantomime to be performed in the UK was Anansi and Brer Englishman by Manley Young, directed by Yvonne Brewster for The Dark and Light Theatre Company, and in 2009 Geoff Aymer's Anansi and the Magic Mirror was produced at the Hackney Empire by the Talawa Theatre Company.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitlePoster advertising Anansi's Royal Quest at the Unicorn Theatre, 1983 (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Printing ink on paper
Brief description
Poster advertising the children's play Anansi's Royal Quest by Jimi Rand at the Unicorn Theatre, 29th January 1983. Screen print
Physical description
Pictorial and typographic. Silhouette in blue and green on a yellow background. A man resting under a palm tree with a crow balanced on his hand, which rests on his knees. A spider's web is stretched between his knee and his foot. The play title and theatre details are given in blue lettering on a white background above and below the image, all within a frame formed by a decorative pattern of stylized animal faces in blue, yellow and white.
Dimensions
  • Poster height: 42cm
  • Poster width: 30cm
Gallery label
(2020)
Gallery rotation, 2020

POSTER FOR ANANSI’S ROYAL QUEST
1983

Anansi the trickster is an African-Caribbean folk hero who sometimes takes the form of a spider. This poster advertises a new Anansi story, written by Jimi Rand and performed at the Unicorn Theatre for Children. Here, Anansi takes human form, holding a crow. A spider’s web stretches between his knee and his foot, suggesting his shape-shifting ability.

Printing ink on paper
Museum no. S.485-1994

Object history
Associated Production: Anansi's Royal Quest. Playwright: Jimi Rand. Unicorn Theatre, London. 29.1.1983. Performance category: children's play. This production was assisted by the GLC and subsidised by the Arts Council.
Summary
Anansi, the creature seen in this poster image, is the Jamaican folkloric trickster spider man who has featured in several plays. Though he lies and cheats to get his way, he is the hero of numerous African and Jamaican stories. In 1972, the first Jamaican style pantomime to be performed in the UK was Anansi and Brer Englishman by Manley Young, directed by Yvonne Brewster for The Dark and Light Theatre Company, and in 2009 Geoff Aymer's Anansi and the Magic Mirror was produced at the Hackney Empire by the Talawa Theatre Company.
Collection
Accession number
S.485-1994

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Record createdJuly 23, 2010
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