Abstract:

The basic principles of semiotics are needed to make sense of visual texts. Posters, one of these texts, aim to create an impact and arouse interest in the recipient. Written or visual signs on the posters are used with different design techniques in the context of communication and thus they ensure that the system are transferred to the recipient in different semantic dimensions. In this study, the posters of the Macbeth play designed by the state and private theaters were analyzed with visual semiotic tools in order to reveal the universe of meaning encoded in the posters. Barthes' concepts of connotation and denotation were used in the analysis of the database. As a result of the examination, it was determined that the written and visual signs on the posters were brought together in accordance with certain criteria in terms of both design and creating a meaning system. It has been determined that the common signs used in the posters contribute to the ideational process in the dimension of connotation. It has been seen that developing graphic design techniques support the criteria such as attracting attention, arousing curiosity and persuading in each poster. Also, it has been determined that the theater posters designed for Macbeth play unique roles in the stages of visual impressiveness, creating a meaning system and moving the ideational process. The common visual images used in the posters revealed the semantic contrasts that refer to the subject of the play.

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