Ken Davenport - Opinions from a Broadway Producer: A friend of mine who stays up on the latest in all sorts of technology sent me a link the other day for a projection-like company called ViXen, which is marketing a "visual performance system". Check it out here. My favorite part of their non-fancy website for such a fancy tech company is this quote: "We invite any requests or ideas and we will work with our extended community of colleagues to source and/or develop a solution that can accomplish almost any design." In other words . . . "tell us what you want to do and we're pretty confident we can deliver it."
Thursday, February 16, 2012
The next advancement in scenery . . . none.
Ken Davenport - Opinions from a Broadway Producer: A friend of mine who stays up on the latest in all sorts of technology sent me a link the other day for a projection-like company called ViXen, which is marketing a "visual performance system". Check it out here. My favorite part of their non-fancy website for such a fancy tech company is this quote: "We invite any requests or ideas and we will work with our extended community of colleagues to source and/or develop a solution that can accomplish almost any design." In other words . . . "tell us what you want to do and we're pretty confident we can deliver it."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
This article makes me kind of angry. While, yes, there are benefits to having sets that are entirely technology based, one of the reasons people go to see theater is because it is not tv or a movie. If everything becomes media we change what theater is. If media becomes this intergrated set designers will start to show in detail they places they are designing as opposed to showing just enough to symbolically explain where the characters are. Yes media doesn't have to give you the whole picture, but it does tend to be much more literal then sets and so it hits you over the head with the idea as opposed to just giving you a metaphor or the ruff outline. Also people watch theater differently then film. We interact with theater, and people emoting on stage, when it turns into projections we are just interacting with a screen and this turns us into a much more passive audience.
Well, I can agree with Zoe and I can also say that this article was a little bit of a downer. Everyday, I'm in class with future scenic artists, lighting designers, TDs etc... Their careers really really depend on having a set to work with or a demand to have a set for a show. I don't know if it is easier to work with projections but it sure seems easier to have shows share the same space. What I love about sets so much is how they are very specific to the show that they were made. And if not the show they were made for, the show that they were changed for. Sets are the things that place in a time and setting. A projection, while it sets a mood as well, is practical for a certain number of things, then it is just overkill. Again, agreeing with Zoe in saying that it is absolutely true that people didn't pay to go to the theater and then sit there to experience a cinematic production.
I am in complete agreement with the previous two comments. Yes, while projections are the new frontier of the theaterical world, sets are the necessary staple for the industry. As Zoe stated, people go to theater for a reason. If they wanted to watch a projected image on a screen, they can stay at home and watch a movie. While the projection systems may always add flavor to a production, it is impossible to replace the physical need for a space and furniture.
I think the important thing to remember about this blog is its title "The Producer's Perspective." In addition to any artistic innovations this new technology promises, he's also thinking about his show's bottom line, one which could be drastically reduced (post-huge startup cost anyway). I agree with previous comments that people react differently to theatre than they do to film/projection, however, it is impossible to ignore the potential for theatre costs to decrease, enabling a broader cross-section of society to see shows. I'm not saying that this is a road I want to go down entirely, but as far as outreach and accessibility are concerned, there may be some potential in projections/media (particularly as the technology costs go down)to bring theatre as an artform to a wider audience.
Post a Comment