The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) has announced it will host a live online experience using virtual reality technology.
Dream, the Midsummer Night’s Dream-inspired performance, will take place in a virtual forest, with motion sensors on the actors allowing them to interact with their surroundings and the audience at home.
The RSC said the show, which will run from March 12-20, uses the latest gaming and theatre technology and an interactive score that responds to the actors’ movement during the show.
The 50-minute online event will be a shared experience between remote audience members and the seven actors who play Puck and the sprites. The audience can choose to buy a £10 ticket to take part and, at key points in the play, directly influence the world of the actors, or to watch the performance for free.
The actors will be performing in a specially created motion capture space at The Guildhall in Portsmouth, supported by a team from the University of Portsmouth.
RSC artistic director Gregory Doran said: “An audience member sitting at home influencing the live performance from wherever they are – that’s exciting.
“It’s not a replacement to being in the space with the performers but it opens up new opportunities.
“Shakespeare was our greatest storyteller and it’s brilliant that we get the opportunity to use one of his plays to discover what could be possible for live performance.”
Dream is being staged in collaboration with the arts event Manchester International Festival, art collective Marshmallow Laser Feast and the Philharmonia Orchestra.
Image: RSC
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