Turning conventional theatre inside out: democratising the audience relationship

Abstract

The digital revolution has not only changed our methods of communication, it has changed our vision of what kinds of communication are desirable. Mass production, the great success story of the industrial era, has been superseded in the post-industrial era by niche marketing and boutique shopping. The wonder of the digital world is the ability to create in bulk but to customise that product to make it appear individual, personal and original. Quite a lot of attention has been paid to the new kinds of performance that new technologies allow, however, I am more interested in the impact of new technologies on traditional theatre practices. If theatre is to continue to act as a mirror to society it must engage with the changing means of communication which new technologies have brought about. Digital technology offers the institutional theatres a real opportunity to reinvigorate and relegitimise themselves as centres of public debate. I suggest, however, that real responsibility accompanies the expanded remit which an increasingly democratic communication entails.