Why this live, why now

A quesiton that theatremakers people who put on plays often ask is “why this play, why now”.

Livestreaming (whether via a video call, or just to Facebook or YouTube) feels like the most analgous form for performers to work in while congregating isn’t possible, so when producing something consider: “why this live now”?

Will the audience gain something by being there as it is made? Will what is being made change because of the audience?

I say this because the diminished quality (compared to pre-recording + editing) combined with the dangers of trusting tech and our own confidences with it, may not always be worth the tradeoff.

What is lost if there is no audience? What could be gained if you have the luxury of edits.

Live chat

Club Guy and Roni’s livestreams of archival work included the creators in the live chat comments thread, responding to what people type and answering questions. That oppertunity is a valuable experience that gets me to sit in front of my computer for a set time. Otherwise, I’d rather watch the video some other time (hopefully?).

Esoteric thoughts

Liveness is exciting because of danger, surprise, and the impact the collective has. Among other things.

I’d rather have a conversation between 2 - 3 people released as a podcast than livestreamed from Zoom.

All I need from what I am consuming, is that it has to be good.