Here at No Proscenium, we’re excited about the boom in live immersive experiences of every genre, and across a wide spectrum of styles.

While we can’t individually vet each production for quality when it is first announced, we do what we can to curate our newsletters and newsfeed.

Nowhere is this curation process more important than when it comes to audience safety — both physical and psychological.

We know that there are experiences available to the audience at large that push boundaries, and we support that in principle and practice. There is, however, a line. Experimentation does not absolve any individual from responsibility. The trust that audiences put into experiential work must be respected for the form to continue to thrive.

The fan vanguard in some markets may notice that not every experience available in their area is reflected in NoPro’s offerings. Sometimes this is due to the choices of producers not to market their productions outside of established audiences. Other times it is because we are unable to verify that boundary-pushing work is taking a sufficient level of precaution to ensure that simulated danger isn’t just actual danger.

To that end, we want to make it clear what we expect from producers of boundary pushing work regardless of genre.

Physical Risks

For a show to be listed on any of NoPro’s platforms, a production that is taking physical risks must have a named safety coordinator. Their name and contact information must be available to the press — ourselves and others — on request. We allow that information may be embargoed for publication, but without the ability to check safety references we will be unable to list your event.

That coordinator, or a designated surrogate, must be on-site and present for any physically risky encounters. Stunts are monitored in professional productions, and these encounters often vary from stunts only insofar as that they are being performed on/with/by non-professionals. Having someone to monitor safety in those moments should be seen as a no-brainer. Failing to having someone on-site is a non-starter for us.

Failing to have someone not directly involved in a scene monitoring intense physical contact is no different from rolling out a red carpet for lawsuits. Waivers are not guaranteed to hold up in court. This is a precaution that serves both the audience and producers alike.

Psychological Risks

There are shows that do deep psychological dives on participants, asking them for personal details which are used to construct narratives using online and in-person communication. Many participants find this deeply fulfilling.

While the sensitive nature of material disclosed by participants to producers may seem to be better off kept in the hands of just one person, this is in fact a potential avenue for abuse.

One-to-one character-to-participant communications should be reviewable by at least one other creator in addition to whoever is conducting the communications. As the nature of these communications are often deeply personal, this can be an effective check against a creator crossing a line.

In the case of a production with just one “full time” creator, we recommend finding someone outside the production to perform the role of auditor.

As with the physical safety coordinator, we expect the name and contact information of the supervising producer/auditor to be available on request to press.

The Curation Process

Our overall aim is to provide a guide to the best that immersive has to offer.

The baseline of that quality control starts with these fundamentals. While there are other reasons that NoPro may decline to list or cover productions, know that our process now calls on us to do this level of due diligence before listing events with intense physical components and personalized psychological deep dives.

If we are not satisfied with the results of our inquiries, we will not cover the production.

Beyond NoPro

Our publication is just one voice in this growing field, and the loudest voice belongs to the patrons of these experiences. This is doubly true when the experiences are customized, and no two paths through are exactly alike. What a reviewer for a website experiences could be vastly different from what a patron does.

While NoPro can set a standard for what we’ll cover, it is up to the community as a whole to set the standards for what is acceptable. We hope that patrons consider what their own standards are, and encourage them to feel more comfortable asking questions and setting their own personal boundaries.

— Noah Nelson
Founder and Publisher, No Proscenium

For more on our polices see: “How To Get Your Work Featured On NoPro,” and our “Content Advisory Policy”

Press releases and other listing requests may be submitted via this form. Send all other inquiries to noah@noproscenium.com.

In addition to the No Proscenium web site, our podcast, and our newsletters, you can find NoPro on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, in our online community Everything Immersive, and in our Slack forum.