The show tells the story of two Iranian 15-year-olds accused and tried for homosexuality. It is based on actual events in Mashad, Iran in 2005. The show began in Chicago, and tomorrow evening is its west coast premiere.

We photographed the three leads (Andy Gala, Tamer Aziz, and Michael Tauzin) separately and together against a white seamless. I  lit to show plenty of definition and contrast, but it still was meant to make it easy for the graphic designer to alter the tones later for an implied hot desert environment.

The first image shows the three guys together:

The producers chose a different set of  images for the one sheet, and I really love how it came together! The final design actually reflects the relationships and story extraordinarily well (design by Noah Benjamin):

Surrounded by photo equipment after the shoot are produer Christopher Sepluveda (left), actors Andy Nala, Tamer Aziz, and Michael Tauzin, and producer Jeremy O’Keefe.

I went back to photograph setups this week. I was so impressed with the cohesiveness of the show, from the lighting to the costuming to the set design! And the actors really put their all into their parts, even though they were only performing their setups for my camera!

Tamer actually plays this scene (above and below, when he is put into prison) in silhouette, which is just right for what I think is one of the best-choreographed moments of the production. But a silhouette didn’t work as well for the photo — his lines and movement complete the visuals when he’s standing a few feet in front of you. So I took a little artistic license and added a kiss of light when he hit his mark (below), in hopes that it would play better as a still image. It turned out to be one of my favorites.

I urge you to make time to see this show! It is directed by Michael Matthews and produced by Jeremy O’Keefe and Christopher Sepulveda. For ticket info (it runs from March 5 to April 4 only), visit the Haram Iran Facebook event page or see the Celebration Theatre’s website.

Haram Iran on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=345262086252

Celebration Theatre – http://www.celebrationtheatre.com/