Large cast performs in 3 ComEd YouTube videos

Renee Matthews in ComEd video

There’s a theatrical flair to Leo Burnett’s current YouTube and Vimeo campaign for client ComEd. Three videos were filmed on a theatre stage and the cast of 16 principals included a Shakespearean actor and Second City performers along with on-camera talent.

The light-hearted series of one-to-two minute videos, titled “Single Bulb Theatre,” was directed by Alberto Belli of LA’s Accomplice Media (whose sister company is Chicago’s STORY) and shot with a local crew of 30 on the Royal George Theatre stage.

John Byrnes from Chicago’s Shakespeare Theatre is the voiceover in “Dill Shakespeare,” a reenactment of “Romeo and Juliet” set inside an aging refrigerator with pickles in starring roles, to make the point, as Byrnes intones, “Running an old refrigerator always ends in tragedy.” 

In “Break Fast,” Rebecca Spence and Josh Bywater are having a domestic argument with Spence smashing plates as Bywater lamely tries to explain away a flirtation.  Neighbor Renee Matthews, listening through the wall, suggests a better way to save energy is to run the dishwasher when it’s full.

“Slumber and Lightning,”  features seven female members of Red Rose and Shine! Children’s choir when a thunderstorm turns a slumber party into a spooky fright fest, in their imaginations.

“Alberto embraced the theatrical nature of the concept and introduced cinematic elements you wouldn’t expect from a stage performance,” said Burnett CD Gary Fox-Robertson, 

“The visual storytelling embraces local Chicago performers who communicate ComEd services, community programs and energy saving tips in a fun, engaging way.”

 

Accomplice EPs were Mel Gragido and Jeff Snyder; Andrew Wehde, DP; Joe Bristol, art director editorial, The Colonie. RP Casting supplied the actors and extras.