Theatres in the Pandemic and the Pursuit of Innovation

The podcast episode discusses the challenges faced by the theatre industry due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with theatres being closed for over a year and uncertainty surrounding their reopening. The podcast emphasizes the importance of experimentation and bold pursuit of new paths for the medium in order for theatres to survive and thrive. Two guests, Sarah Ellis from the Royal Shakespeare Company and Robin McNicholas from Marshmallow Laser Feast, are highlighted as innovators in the theatre industry. The Royal Shakespeare Company has experimented with mounting productions on social media and incorporating new technologies like mixed reality and projection mapping. Marshmallow Laser Feast has been at the forefront of tech-driven storytelling, exploring augmented and virtual reality. The collaboration between these two innovative companies has resulted in a virtual adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream called Dream, where live actors control virtual characters and the audience can participate by controlling sprites in the enchanted forest. The episode concludes by expressing hope for the future of storytelling through productions like Dream.