Pervasive theatre: post-screen audiences and professional performance practice

ABSTRACT

This paper examines how the habits and expectations of post-screen audiences are driving changes in professional performance and asks how the ubiquity of the screen can help find new ways to engage audiences with professional performance practice. The paper centres on a practice-based research project Pervasive Theatre (funded by FutureDream through Arts Council England and Kent County Council) carried out by the author with the performance company Assault Events. The 7-month project explored the potential of online social tools to create a multi-media cross-platform environment for performance and sought to advance the field of performance practice by developing new frameworks to create professional performance practice that reflects new screen modalities. Through the creation of the piece Hopscotch Highway, the project explored what new screen modalities could offer professional performance practice, particularly relating to different ways that audiences could engage with performance through mobile platforms. Through a multi-platform, transmedia approach the company developed a piece of work that explored different ways to make and share performance work, creating a framework for practice that reflects media audiences new ways of accessing, experiencing and engaging with creative content.

KEYWORDS:

• Post-screen audiences
• performance practice
• new media
• mobile technologies
• social media
• transmedia

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Sophy Smith is Professor of Creative Technologies Practice at the Institute of Creative Technologies, DeMontfort University, Leicester where she is also co-director of DAPPER (Digital Arts Performance Practice - Emerging Research). DAPPER is a space where people working in all areas of digital performance can come together – practitioners, technologists, academics, organisations and all those in-between – to capture, share, discuss, experiment and develop work and ideas relating to digital art and performance. We are always looking to grow DAPPER and include more people in our activities and events – if you're a maker, developer or thinker and want to join in, get in touch! To find out more about DAPPER and the Storytelling in Immersive Environments (SIVE) events, go here; http://www.dapp-er.com