Our favourite Easter eggs in theatre show artwork

As it’s Easter, we thought we would have a little fun over the Bank Holiday weekend!

Have you ever looked at a logo for a show and it suddenly made even more sense than before? While we love the neatness of the crossed red boots making the “K” of Kinky Boots, the pill that dots the “I” for Be More Chill, and the doorbell “O” for Book of Mormon, we’re delving a little deeper with this list.

We love discovering these hidden Easter eggs in logos, artwork, posters and beyond. All credit, kudos and flowers, of course, go to the brilliant creatives behind every one of these examples.

Here are just some of the WhatsOnStage team’s favourites – please do share yours with us on social media!

Cabaret

Come hear the music play, and take a closer look at this logo! Rebecca Frecknall’s revival shows an eye, but if you look carefully, it is formed of two sideways K and the pupil is a C.

Cats

Once you see it, you’ll never not! Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats often features a dancer (presumed to be Victoria) as the iris in the cat’s eye. The logo is now so iconic that the recent cast announcement for the open-air revival pays homage…

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Now, it wouldn’t be an Easter feature without some mention of chocolate, would it? The gold textures are just like the ticket into the factory, and the factory? That’s pumping out the smoke that reads Charlie! More impressively, if you tilt your head to the right, you can make out the outline of Willy Wonka’s side profile and top hat.

Come From Away

This one is a little more subtle but really beautiful. The textured letters look like bark from trees, and the position is known for its use of real trees in its sets to really centre us in Newfoundland. In addition, the blue background has texturisation that looks like flight paths.

Frozen

We can’t hold it back anymore! Can you spot the silhouette of Elsa harnessing her powers in the cracks of the snowflake? You should be able to spot her power pose with the long braid behind her. Want even more? Look at the blue space around the snowflake arms and you’ll see the side profiles of the two sisters looking at each other…

Heathers

This is unofficial, but we like it! Have you ever noticed that the Heathers font looks identical to that of cleaning products? Interesting that it is in red when a certain character drinks liquid drain cleaner…

Into the Woods

At first glance, you might not notice the wolf emerging from the branches of the S!

The Jungle Book

We love this new addition from the National Theatre’s play of The Jungle Book, which foreshadows the ending.

Mamma Mia!

Not exactly an Easter egg, but some trivia to impress your friends with! The Mamma Mia! creative team were always keen to have Sophie at the core of the story, which led to the blushing bride as the key art. Despite the young girl singing “I am the girl with golden hair” in “Thank You For The Music”, the artwork has always had brown hair, and the musical has it purchased for another 70-odd years. The reason for this has been unearthed with clarification from French photographer Jean-Paul Nacivet, who shot a bride, named Emma, and groom, named Karl-Pascal, in 1992 before the art director of the show came across it, fell in love with the joy in the woman’s face, and commissioned a painting of it. The decision was made – or perhaps not even considered – to keep Emma’s hair as-is.

Miss Saigon

A fan-favourite, you can see a stylised helicopter merging with a woman’s face in the signature red and yellow. Can’t see her? Look where the tail should be and see a brow, eye, nose and mouth.

My Neighbour Totoro

You may well think that the My Neighbour Totoro art is simply the furry guy himself, with the iconic umbrella scene forming his nose, and you’d be correct! But have you noticed the Soot Sprites in his eyes?

Next to Normal

It appears that the recent West End revival has taken inspiration from a poster, titled Dylan, by Milton Glaser. Created to promote Bob Dylan’s greatest hits album, it captures the psychedelic aesthetic of the 1960s.

Operation Mincemeat

A recent subtle yet highly effective example comes from WhatsOnStage Award-winning musical Operation Mincemeat. Can you see how the briefcase positioning, in tandem with that scrawl of a fringe, looks like a particular historical figure? God, that’s brilliant!

Stranger Things: The First Shadow

The multi-award-winning stage play acts as a prequel to the hit Netflix series, and the logo gives away a crucial character development if you happen to look at the shadow (the clue is in the name!).