Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 1996 - 39

THE PROBLEM
Arecent experimental production of Elmer Rice's Tbe Adding Macbine
at the niversity of Kansas featured the premier use of virtual reality in a
fuUy mounted theatrical production. In the process of merging the art of
live pelformance and Ole technology of real-time computer generated
graphics (virtual reality or VR) we looked for answers to many questions. Could tltis in fact be done, and how? Could VR technologies help
stage dramas \\~Ol unusual or difficult scenographic problems? How can
this new technological method of presentation help a modern audience
gain new insights into a drama? Would the combination of these two different but very similar fields of endeavor serve to illuminate each other?
How would an examination of VR lead to a better understanding of the
theatrical art and how could a comparison to theatre practices aUow for
better design of virtual-worlds? How would the two practices have to be
modified from their normal application to fit one to the other?
During the process of planning and mounting the production we
faced several challenges, some practical, others aJtistic. The focus of
this article is to outline some of the unique practical or technical aspects of the production in order that subsequent discussions of artistic
aJld philosophical discoveries will be made clearer.
The ovelcarching technical consideration in the pbll1ning of this
production was the need to devise a practical method of presenting \~IC
tual environments to a theatre audience. In order to find a suitable audiencelactor/virtual-world interface, traclitional methods of staging

plays and presenting virtual realities had to be exanlined for any similarities that could be exploited and any conllicting differences for which
comprontises would have to be found.
"Virtual reality" is a trendy phrase, aJld the subject of IlllmerOUS
interpretations. Common to most definitions is Olat VR is a computer
simulation of real or imaginaJy el1\~ronments and that these simulations
aJ'e "interactive .. capable of being navigated or maJlipulated in realtime raOler Olan being pre-recorded. Some definitions also include Ole
idea of immersion, in which Ole images of ilie \~IWal el1\~ronments are
presented to the user in such an intimate manner iliat Ole real world
can be disregarded.
The main similarity between VR aJld tlleatre , and tile one that first
suggested making Ole link between the two, is that bOtll aJ'e dependent
on this live, or real-time action. For theatre to remain true to its form
and not wander into the realms of tele\~sion or film, it must be played
live, not pre-recorded, \\~th an immediate relationship between actor
and audience. Likewise, VR must also be experienced in real-time, as it
is generated, or it loses its unique quality and becomes a member of tile
pre-recorded computer animation genre.
AnoOler common c11aJ"acteristic of VR and theatre is tllat both occupy Olree-dimensional space aJld more often than not, rely on some
form of illusion to suggest the form of tilat space. There is a great deal
of leeway when looking for similar uses of real and illUSOly space. Just
as theatre is comprised of wildly different styles of production and
mechanisms of presentation, VR also has its different styles. The best
known VR interface, ilie head-mounted display, relies almost totaUy on
presenting an illusion of an environment to a user's eyes. OOler interfaces however, more closely resemble 01eatre in Olat Oley present a
combination of real and fictive space to the user.
These interfaces such as ilie heads-up display, in wltich electronicaUy generated images are over-laid onto \~ews of reality, are often put
in a sub-category of VR referred to as augmented reality or AR. CAVE environments are rooms in wltich the waUs are made of remcprojection
paJlels. Users can enter alone or in groups and view different computer
generated vistas projected onto tile walls. "Environmental" ilieatre productions seek to create tile sensation of immersion in a sintiIaJ' manner.
Cockpit interfaces, such as those used in llight or automobile simulators, place the user wiOtin a taJlgible space, or cockpit, from wltich an
illusion of the outside world is viewed tluough windows. CompaJ'e this
to a set seen through the portal of the procenium or to the illusionistic
painted drops revealed behind the set.
Auseful VR-theatre interface then must capitalize on these mutually defining characteristics by presenting live actors witltin three-dimensiomtl \~rtual worlds. These worlds must have the ability to be
navigated in real-time as the drama progresses. This hyblid vilWal pelc
formaJlce space can be a combination of actual or illUSOly space and
sHU remain faithful to the tenets of botll theatre aJld VR just so long as it
is presented in a live format.
Key differences in VR and traditional Oleatre practice proved to be
the cause of some concern during the design of Ole intelface. Theatre
has l)1)icaUy been a communal experience. Its audience is a large group
of people gathered together to share all experience, aJld through this
sharing, the experience is heightened. Much of our present thinking
about the nature of theatre assumes tltis to be true without being quesTD&T

WI, TER

996

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 1996