Technology sucks.
For a while, I’ve thought that immersive theatre has grown in popularity over because of technology. Every day, we’re glued to our phone, laptop, or tablet screens doing email, watching YouTube, or any other digital activity. Heck, I spend more time socializing via text chats than I do in person these days.
So, to reignite our need for meaningful social situations, people are rushing towards the thing that promises the deepest and most unique experiences possible: immersive theatre.
On the other hand, shops like VR Playhouse have been searching for the right cross section of immersive theatre and technology since the medium’s re-emergence over the past few years.
So my interest was piqued when I was sent VR Playhouse’s project The Surrogate — a blend of immersive theatre and VR. The Surrogate tells a tale of a woman struggling with complete technology overload and the anxiety it has caused. In order to cope with this anxiety she retreats to a limbo state with another woman taking her physical place: her surrogate.
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This is where you, the viewer, step in. You, as the woman, explore a series of long, wooden hallways that lead to portals into your home. Only, you’re no longer there. You watch as your husband gets to know this new woman — who she is, how she feels, and how your husband and she will begin their new relationship with her stepping into her place.
Shops like VR Playhouse have been attempting to mimic immersive theatre’s sense of wonder by giving the viewer agency to step into a new world and to explore new emotional possibilities.
As the piece continues for 10 minutes, it presents a lot of good questions about technology and how it slowly deteriorates our need to feel something — anything, for that matter.
Does it answer any of these questions? Well, no. This is only a preview, after all. And, I must admit, I still don’t understand our lead character’s place in the universe, where exactly she is within these hallways, or why no one else can see her. Does she still exist? Who is the surrogate? Is she a robot, or a hired hand of sorts?
The ending of the piece promises that more episodes are in the works, but I genuinely wish that a few more pieces of the puzzle were clarified to allow me to stop focusing on what was “missing” and instead focus on the interesting mechanics VR Playhouse was able to put together to try to blend VR, 360 video, and an immersive playset.
Until then, though, what was presented is an interesting look into this intersection. Virtual reality and immersive theater have long been courting but never married — and I’m glad this work is continuing the conversation.
A preview of The Surrogate is currently available for Oculus Rift.
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