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Glass Half Full:  Some Surprising Benefits of Virtual Theatre

By Lavinia Roberts 

Lavinia Roberts is a theatre teacher and award-winning playwright who’s passionate about arts education and about creating zany, engaging, and meaningful plays for schools and community theaters. 

What a challenging year 2020 was for theatre folks!  But with the-show-must-go-on attitude, theatre artists have stepped up to the challenge of creating engaging and entertaining virtual performances, moving from the stage to the safety of the screen.  So, as we raise our glass to 2021, here are some glass-half-full benefits to Virtual Theatre!

Take advantage of expanded audiences.  Audiences of live theatre productions often consist of folks living in the vicinity of the auditorium.  Yet, virtual performances mean that cast and crew members can invite family and friends from all over!  As long as folks have the technology to access the production, they can attend.  So, encourage your cast and crew to get the word out about your show!  You’ll be surprised who might attend!  And the grandparents in Sarasota will be thrilled to finally be able to watch a performance!

Love the convenience factor.  Involved in a community theatre production and feel like attending evening rehearsal in fuzzy slippers?  No worries!  And no one is going to see your comfy fluffy pajama bottoms, either!  Or maybe you aren’t missing the rush-hour traffic you normally dealt with when heading to the theatre after work.  These are just a few of the benefits of virtual rehearsals!  So, go ahead and enjoy making a cup of tea or petting the dog during your virtual rehearsal break.  When we return to live theatre, wearing fuzzy slippers to rehearsal will be a thing of the past, so make the most of it now!

Go green.  Often, live theatre productions involve ample time at the copier machine printing electronic scripts or programs, not to mention publicity materials like posters, postcards, or flyers.  Virtual Theatre, however, is best publicized, well...  virtually!  Post photos or screenshots of rehearsals on your theatre’s social media platforms.  Send out email blasts and encourage your cast and crew to do the same.  Post your show on virtual community event calendars.  And at the same time save some money and trees by going green with the press and marketing for your Virtual Theatre production.

Save money.  Your production budget might have included rent for rehearsal space, materials for building an epic set, advertising and print costs, costuming, and a host of other costs.  Say “goodbye” to spending your hard-earned budget on building a set and “hello” to finding public domain images to use as digital backgrounds.  Or invite performers to draw or create their own digital background.  Yet another benefit of Virtual Theatre is that it gives actors the opportunity to play costume designer and props master at home (along with potentially saving the producer a few bucks along the way).

Replay that.  Perhaps you want an actor to try a monologue exploring new choices and you’d like to be able to compare and contrast both performances.  Or maybe you want feedback on a musical number from a colleague.  One of the great aspects of virtual rehearsal is that you can record different components of the rehearsal.  Watching a recording of a rehearsal can be a valuable reflection tool for performers, too.  Just make sure you’re not posting or sharing the recordings in a way that violates your performance license.

Acting for the screen.  Actors should get ready for close-ups when doing Virtual Theatre.  From makeup to movement, acting for the screen is different than acting for the stage.  Virtual performances are an opportunity for actors to broaden their craft and develop their toolbox as creative artists as they learn to act for a different medium.  This can help them later on if they decide to pursue careers on the silver screen or have to do any other public speaking or presentations on virtual platforms.

Invite a playwright.  Often, playwrights don’t get to see the productions of their plays or meet the artists bringing their work to life, unless their work is produced locally.  Many theaters — community, school or professional alike — can’t afford to fly playwrights in.  Yet, on the opening night of a virtual play, playwrights can have a front row seat from the comfort of their own home and at no extra cost to the producers!  So go on, invite your favorite Pioneer Drama playwright to your virtual production!  (Not-so-subtle hint:  I know this playwright would be totally thrilled to virtually attend any of her virtual productions!  Just saying!)

Still got it!  Although virtual theatre is very different from the magic of a live performance, there are still many of the elements and much of the appeal of live theatre.  In Virtual Theatre, there is the opportunity for ensemble building.  Actors can laugh, play, and create together.  A virtual play is still a means to share a story with the community.  Although thespians and audiences alike might miss the ephemeral nature of live performance, theatre artists can still share, create, and have fun together — virtually.

So, please join me in a toast.  To theatre — onstage or virtually — in the year ahead!  Break plenty of virtual legs this year!