Theatre is one of the oldest forms of entertainment, dating back to the days of Ancient Greece when people would sit in open-air theatres built into hills. The art form still exists, but it is far less central to mainstream entertainment than it was back then.
One of the primary challenges for theatre in the modern age is that people simply have too many other options for entertainment. With streaming services like Netflix, the options for film and television series are endless. Theatre needs to do more to stay alive in the technological era, and live streaming may be the solution.
Live Streaming Could Open Up Theatre to a Larger Audience
Live streaming has been one of the most important upgrades of the internet era, and it has been used to bring people close to action that they would have previously had to have travelled to witness. For example, there are live news offerings on social media that give viewers an everyday person’s perspective on the action. There are also live shopping channels, where people can ask questions about the products and purchase them within the stream.
Live casino has also been a major development, with players now able to play table games with real dealers from the comfort of their own homes. This gives them the sense that they’re playing in a bustling casino, and has opened the industry up to people who may have lived too far away from a gambling house to ever have the chance to play these games. Live casino is now so popular that it spans beyond tables, and even included game show-style options like Dice City and Treasure Island.
Some local theatres are already using live streaming to ensure that their plays can get in front of a bigger crowd. Selling tickets to online customers means that they can make more money for each performance and reach people who aren’t geographically able to make it to the theatre.
Theatre Could Evolve With Hybrid Experiences
The next step is for the biggest theatres in the world to move to live streaming and to create their own dedicated online entertainment services. Imagine having a theatre streaming service akin to Netflix that has all the best performances from the West End and Broadway on offer. This would surely attract a lot of people, and would also help new people discover theatre.
There could also be a rise in hybrid theatre experiences, where future productions blend in-person and digital formats. For example, there could be online polls during an act where viewers get the chance to decide which direction the story goes in. Theatres could also bring in AR and VR elements, potentially allowing viewers to see the action from the perspective of the performers.
Theatre has become a niche form of entertainment in the modern day, but it has the potential to boom again if it embraces live streaming. The technology could bring the world’s best plays to people around the world, and could lead to new opportunities for engagement such as behind-the-scenes content and interviews with top actors.
