Opening in September 2009, Richmond CenterStage is a performing arts complex in the heart of Richmond, Virginia, where music, drama and visual arts exist alongside rehearsal rooms and community projects.
As an exciting and innovative arts and entertainment hub featuring local, national and international artists, the client wanted a website that reflects this energy while remaining informative, navigable and self-updateable (with news, an events calendar, polls and other forms of content). Authorized staff members needed to be able to produce professional looking pages without any prior knowledge of HTML. Any section of the website had to be accessible with the minimum number of clicks from anywhere else on the site.
Websitehttp://www.RichmondCenterStage.com
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The Challenges Getting the exact look and feel of such a dynamic venue required several drafts of visual design. Where there is no “right” or “wrong” way to proceed, it can be difficult to grasp the exact feel the client is going for (and they might not clearly know themselves), but like a golfer methodically driving, chipping and putting to the hole, our presentations got closer and closer to the client’s envisioned appearance, and we agreed on a star-studded Flash and HTML intro page with simpler inner pages where the user-updateable content would appear. It was important to make the content easy to format online so that consistency could be achieved throughout the site. |
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The Solution Following the strict requirements of the brief, we created an information architecture that kept the main categories and sub-categories accessible in one, two or three clicks from the main page. Where required, content can be added, removed and edited by anyone with authorization and with professional formatting thanks to the versatile content management system, Joomla. The website can now be updated the moment a new act is confirmed, making the site a reliable place to go for the latest information. We also incorporated a “print page” button on most internal pages that launches a bare-bones content page with minimal formatting and backgrounds. |
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The Results The site went live months before the opening of Richmond CenterStage, allowing the client to use it as a key promotional tool, featuring walkarounds, progress reports, talent listings, booking information and that all-important countdown feature, among many other attractions. “The Web site is integral to demonstrating that Richmond CenterStage is not just a place; but also a collaborative starting point for people and programs to come together for the purpose of serving a diverse community,” said Bob Mooney, Executive Director of Richmond CenterStage. |
