A digital theatre reminder

- When a show has already been filmed then it's 'streaming'.

- If a show is being performed live then it's 'live-streaming'.

Both are great and have their own advantages and disadvantages but please can we try to get the language right.

Oh and if something was previously live-streamed but a recording of it is being rebroadcast then that is 'streaming'

As digital, hybrid, and transmedia work becomes more common for theatre I think it's fair that we label and name it correctly.

Not only for audiences but for creatives too. Only by understanding the differences and the strengths of each will they evolve and grow

One of the key qualities of theatre is that it is live, unmanipulated, and created & watched in a single unity of time. One of the key qualities of film is that it is edited, considered, filmed multiple times, and is created and watched in displaced time.

The two offer distinct opportunities and both can learn and lend each other skills and tricks. But only if we know how to name them.

I remember when lockdown started and people said that digital theatre was just crap TV. It needn't be if we learn how it works, and how to move the cross-fader between screen and theatre.

I have also noticed that far from needing to mimick film, that digital theatre can learn from and absorb other forms such as video game streaming, live chats & forums, durational art, museums/galleries, video conferencing.

When any form is invented it mimics a previous form until it evolves. Film was just theatre captured by a camera until editing was invented. The internet was just a digital collection of library books until comments, posting, sharing were implemented.

If we learn how to describe and evaluate digital theatre and accurately assess its toolsets and their use. Then I promise it can evolve into its own related but distinct form.

I have played enough video games and read enough comic books to know the benefits and growth of intersected mediums. Both have grown into fully fledged art forms with their own content and ecosystems.

But any growth will come from labelling and naming things correctly, and learning how they work.