What is it about?
This publication describes a panel conversation between artists who create live theatre inside virtual reality. Instead of watching a show on a screen, audiences and performers share the same digital space, which can feel more like “being there” together, even from different countries. The panel compares how live VR performance is made across different social VR platforms (such as VRChat, Neos, and Mozilla Hubs) and in standalone apps. The speakers discuss what VR can do that physical theatre cannot, what changes when you adapt a stage performance into VR, who the audience is and how accessible VR shows are, and practical, real-world examples of the challenges and advantages of producing this new kind of storytelling.
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Why is it important?
This work is important because it captures an early, on-the-ground view of how live performance changes when it moves into virtual reality, told directly by people actively building shows across different VR platforms. At a time when more audiences and artists were experimenting with remote and digital experiences, the panel highlights what VR makes possible that film, streaming, or traditional theatre often cannot: a shared sense of presence, real-time interaction, and performances that can reach people regardless of location. It is also timely because VR “metaverses” are not all the same. By comparing multiple platforms and production approaches, the discussion helps readers understand why creative and technical choices matter, how those choices shape the audience experience, and what it takes to make work that is sustainable and accessible. For artists and producers, it offers practical lessons and common pitfalls. For researchers, funders, and festival programmers, it clarifies what this emerging medium needs to grow and what kinds of outcomes to look for.
Perspectives
Coming out of the pandemic, we wanted to bring together a panel of some of the strongest creators working in live VR theatre at that moment. These speakers were chosen specifically because each of them was building on a different foundation, some were creating inside established social VR platforms, and others were building their own tools or platforms. That mix let us compare what it really takes to produce live performance in VR depending on where you are making the work, what you can do easily, what you have to fight for, and what you simply cannot do without major resources. Our hope is that this conversation encourages more artists to experiment with VR theatre, not as a replacement for in-person work, but as an expansion of what theatre can be. VR live performance sits at a rare intersection: it can have the interactivity audiences associate with games, the liveness and emotional immediacy of theatre, and the scope and world-building scale we often link to film. Done well, it creates a kind of shared presence that is unlike any other storytelling form. This panel also marks an early chapter in our field, when the potential for truly impactful live VR performance was just becoming clear. Even then, we could see the future, performances that connect participants across the globe in real time, building community and story with people who might never share the same physical room. We wanted to help open that door for others, and to show that this emerging medium is not only possible, it is worth exploring.
Deirdre V. Lyons
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Live Performance in VR, August 2021, ACM (Association for Computing Machinery),
DOI: 10.1145/3450617.3464495.
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