Category: theatre

Having long been one of the digital technologies heralded as being a game changer for theatre, we think VR has an important part to play now in engaging audiences during the coronavirus pandemic. This will be a vital test of how theatre might be delivered safely and innovatively in the short- to medium-term, and a taste of how theatre, and its audiences, may embrace digital in the long-term. – Arts Professional

“In a hasty effort to be on the right side of history, I fear this industry is neglecting the historically precedented and exceedingly unspoken costs of forcing this kind of assimilation to white institutional power in this country. Doors are swinging open and white institutional leaders are ushering tokenized theatremakers into their broken homes. And in exchange for closer proximity to once tightly held resources, in a cavalier and unblinking gesture, our white leaders have laid at their feet long legacies of institutional harm and oppression. Do with this what you will.” – HowlRound

“I think the notion of criticism may expand, and people will write more culturally comprehensive mixed-discipline pieces. But it’s hard for me to imagine. It will be interesting to see how much people are actually willing to read in the future online, and whether most communication will be single lines, single impressions, condensations.” – The Stage

“Stepping into a taishū engeki show is like being welcomed into a wild and flamboyant secret society. As performers in outlandish costumes dance on stage, delighted fans dance along in unison from their seats. Somehow, everyone knows the moves. Periodically, an excited fan will scurry up to the stage with an envelope or wrapped gift, or will jump into the aisles looking for more room to wave a glow-stick. This might sound like a crowd of teenagers at a pop concert, but many women in attendance are old enough to have teenage children of their own.” – Atlas Obscura

After decades of sporadic adaptations, Hollywood has suddenly thrown a lot of financing — and entire brass sections — at theatermakers. Which means that film’s latest special effect is a millenniums-old art form that’s mostly feet and breath and plywood. – The New York Times

It was a decade after West Side Story, and Jerome Robbins got the idea to make one of Bertolt Brecht’s didactic plays into a musical. Though Sondheim in particular required some convincing, it eventually became a promising project, with John Guare writing the book and Zero Mostel engaged to star. Finally, the piece was set to premiere on Broadway in 1968, and then 1969, as A Pray by Blecht. (The title was Lenny’s.) Never happened, of course. Jesse Green recounts the story of how it came together and then fell apart. – The New York Times

Meanwhile, they’re performing stage tricks from home for kids, also at home, who are often rather tired of screens. “The shift has been particularly jarring for people of this specialty, who’ve long argued that magic is best experienced in person.” – The New York Times

Maybe that seems obvious: Playwrights can make better work if they’re not suffering or working four other jobs to grasp for financial stability. But also, it has what the British call a knock-on effect: “If you give money to a playwright, they will give it to other artists.” – HowlRound