All the world’s a stage: creating for live performance inside and outside of the boundaries of a theater

Over the past three years, the world of theatre has change drastically. From its shutdown and transferal to Zoom theatre and recorded performances in 2020, to its resurrection in the years to follow, live performance has gone through a metamorphosis and come out on the opposite side for the better with more fluid and creative multimedia experiences that transcend the common theatrical structure and into areas and venues that had never been explored.

Designers have been one of the main forces in this resurrection – creating COVID-safe productions, figuring out how to design for performances shown solely through a webcam or that were put on in parking lots, or inventing innovative ways of creating theatre using audio, experiential design, or virtual reality. The University of Iowa has been at the forefront of this theatrical revolution, providing me with the resources and opportunities to not only gain a solid base of knowledge in scenic and costume design, but also in the emerging worlds of interactive theatre, location-based experiences, and digital live performance through virtual reality.

The future of theatre and live performance is bright for any designer. An artist such as myself can create work where the whole world’s a stage, where an audience can see, appreciate, and even interact with a work on an international scale, and where a designer can be multidisciplinary and make unique and groundbreaking experiences for an audience instead of remaining within the bounds that a theatrical designer is traditionally confined.