Arts Column: Archive or art?

In an age where digital media seems to permeate every corner of our lives, the theatre is one of the last tech-free oases. Recording is strictly forbidden, cameras are banished, and smartphone use is sacrilege.

However, the theatre world has increasingly begun to adapt to the technological age. These hitherto banned devices are working their way not only into the theatre, but onto the stage itself. I first noticed this trend in the National Theatre’s 2013 production of Edward II, where actors wielding cameras projected the action live above the stage.

More recently the Young Vic’s Measure for Measure and The Oresteia at Trafalgar Studios have adopted the same techniques, and Complicite’s The Encounter at Warwick Arts Centre making stunning use of sound; equipping the audience with headphones to create a very personal, intimate atmosphere.

As well as the intrusion of our digital lives on stage, broadcasting productions live to cinemas has proven hugely popular. The proponents of schemes such as National Theatre Live argue they bring theatregoing, with its excessive price tag and bourgeois reputation, to a mass audience.

However, there are undoubtedly knock-on effects to viewing a filmed production over a live one. After seeing the Barbican’s Hamlet starring Benedict Cumberbatch in person and on screen I thought there were some elements unfortunately lost in translation.

The haunting first moment of the play where Nat King Cole’s “Nature Boy” resounded throughout the audience could not produce the same extraordinary effect without the acoustics of a massive auditorium. On the other hand, in a spine-tingling moment Cumberbatch is able to deliver Hamlet’s “Am I a villain?” directly down the lens of the camera, bridging the distance between the actor and the cinema-going audience.

So are these growing technological trends an inclusive innovation for the digital generation, or merely a gimmick that intrudes on the theatre-going experience?

So are these growing technological trends an inclusive innovation for the digital generation, or merely a gimmick that intrudes on the theatre-going experience? In my opinion, the use of technological advances in theatre, and screenings such as NT Live, are a positive sign for the future of the medium.

When technology contributes to the storytelling it can bring something new and exciting to the table. However, I add this proviso: theatre-makers should be cautious of replacing experiencing a production in person with something that proves to be a mediocre muddle of filtering great theatre into clumsily-shot cinema or of creating an archive rather than a piece of art.