Projection and VR at WPI

We've done a number of shows using projections and virtual reality over the past few years. We've used computer generated worlds, computer generated graphics, slide shows, live video, recorded video, and combinations of all of these things. What we haven't used is any sort of goggles or glasses for the audience. There are a number of reasons for that; first, by using goggles we limit our audience to the number of headsets we have. Those headsets are never comfortable, and the show becomes about what you can see through the headsets, making the show a vehicle for the vr and giving it that "gimmicky" feel. Glasses or goggles also isolate the audience from one another, and a large part of theatre is the communal nature of the audience. Finally, settling on any headset would've meant a major expenditure of capital and a commitment to one technology. One of the things we're trying to do is keep this technology affordable, so that actual theaters can use it.

On an artistic level, we're only trying to make new worlds onstage for the actors. The audience generally remains as audiences have since theatre began-- as spectators looking into the world of the characters. The actors can travel through computer generated worlds that are both impossible to build onstage and just plain impossible to build. We can make hyper-realistic landscapes (within the boundaries of current technology), or totally abstract mindscapes. We can turn the stage into a giant TV for the actors to watch, or have them inhabit the projected world by becoming projections themselves. We're trying to expand the possibilities of performance while remaining faithful to the idea of live performance. Wherever possible we generate the projections in real time, with an operator interacting with actors while they're onstage.

LCD projectors have made this possible. They accept both computer and video input, and project images that are bright enough to be seen while stage lights are on. Currently they're used mostly in business and educational environments (and some would say misused, as anyone who's slept through a PowerPoint presention will agree) and have certain limitations in the theatre because they were designed to enhance a single speaker lecturing to a group of people. We're pushing the boundaries of these what these projectors can do, constantly running up against limits in design, and finding workarounds to create new effects. Every show we do has new requirements and new problems arise (just like regular theatre), and every time we find a way to make some amazing effects.

The shows we've done so far that have featured virtual reality or projections:

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
was our first foray into computer generated worlds and projections in November 1996.

Medea/media
was specifically written and directed by Susan Vick with projections in mind. It is our most ambitious setup to date, and really proved that this would work. It was performed in November 1997.

The Story of Dr. Faust
was performed outside WPI, at Worcester Foothills Theater in March 1998. The script was written and directed by Mark Smith, Foothills' artistic director. This was our first foray into using projections and vr in the professional world.

Saint Joan
didn't actually include any projections, but it is notable because we built our theater (Alden Hall) and the Saint Joan set using a new engine (Quake II). It took place in November 1998.

New Voices 17
included some projection, all done by Dan Jacques. He gives a great description of the amount of work that goes into mere seconds of stage time. This is our annual theatre festival and took place in April 1999.

La Vita Claire
was our second foray into professional theatre. It was presented at the BCA Theater in the Boston Center for the Arts by Centastage Performance Group in May 1999.

The Order of Things
was our third foray into professional theatre. It was presented at Boston Playwright's Theatre by Centastage Performance Group in April 2000.

Quakebeth
was a new direction to explore. We had the projection thing pretty well down, now we decided to explore machinima. Using networked computers each student portrayed one actor in each scene of Shakespeare's Macbeth. As of April 2001, Quakebeth is still a work in progress.