What the Republican and Democratic Convention Stages Show
What the Republican and Democratic Convention Stages Show
1 minute read
First lady Michelle Obama delivering remarks on the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 25, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.Ben Lowy for TIME
The stage of a national political convention follows a pretty standard formula: A single podium on a large riser.
But beyond that simple layout, there are a thousand design decisions, some major and some minor, which convey the message that the campaign and the party hope to send to delegates as well as the TV audience at home.
This year’s Republican and Democratic conventions had some telling differences. The GOP convention stage was much more brassy and ostentatious, with more of a focus on the campaign’s messaging: Trump, Make America Great Again, rows of flags and congratulatory tweets all played a central role.
There was a downside to that approach, as it sometimes seemed to focused on the candidate himself.
The Democratic stage, by contrast, was more muted and generic, with colors and patterns and a much-criticized lack of American flags. That fit a campaign and party that are trying to play it safe, welcome a broad variety of voices and keep the focus on the other campaign.
Click through the gallery to see how they differed.
The Republican convention stage left no doubt who the nominee was and the surfeit of American flags echoed his campaign theme of making America great.Anadolu Agency—Getty ImagesThe Democratic convention stage was more generic, with solid colors and patterns and a monitor that showcased the speaker of the moment.
Natalie Keyssar for TIMEThe dominant color on the Republican stage was gold, long favored by nominee Donald Trump, who even gave an interview to "60 Minutes" while sitting on a gold chair.Anadolu Agency—Getty ImagesBy contrast, the dominant color of the Democratic stage was blue, a color associated with Democrats since the "blue states" and "red states" of the contested 2000 election.Ben Lowy for TIMEThough not visible on television, the Republican arena also had a scrolling Twitter screen, in keeping with the nominee's penchant for 140 character messages.Win McNamee—Getty ImagesThe text at the Democratic convention, by contrast, stuck to the same few phrases about the convention itself.Alycia Monaco—ABC via Getty ImagesThe Quicken Loans Arena also had numerous signs saying "Make America Great Again," reinforcing Trump's campaign slogan.Win McNamee—2016 Getty ImagesVideo monitors behind speakers at the Republican convention also often showed related images, such as this football field behind inspirational speaker Brock Mealer.Alex Wong—2016 Getty ImagesVideo backdrops at the Democratic convention, by contrast, were more generic patterns.Paul Morigi—WireImageBut no moment at the Democratic convention will likely match the theatrical stagecraft of Donald Trump's entrance on the first night of the GOP convention to introduce his wife.Ben Lowy for TIME
