There is a world elsewhere: rehearsing and training through immersive telepresence

The article will examine how telepresence technologies are repurposed to enable performers to rehearse and train over distances. The discussion will revolve around a variety of telepresence technologies/web-based applications repurposed to investigate actor training, rehearsal, education and performance. In this project, Immersive Telepresence in Theatre, two identical spaces, linked by H.323 videoconferencing technology, were created in Tampere and Coventry, each with rear projection screens giving the participants the impression of a shared space. The project used existing pedagogical practices but re-applied them to a digital setting, with the teaching and rehearsal process only slightly modified to account for the technological aspects of working in this manner. As well as the traditional rehearsal process there is also the social aspect which builds a group dynamic amongst the performers. For this aspect of the process, a range of supporting applications were used – Facebook for scheduling and rapid sharing of visual materials from and the web conferencing app, Adobe Connect, was used to provide individualised rehearsal rooms for the participants as well as break-out social spaces. When training in a digital environment, the lack of immediate touch must be replaced by other sensory means. The use of the screen meant that actors had to take a more experimental approach to rehearsal. This process redefines how participants use the space, as proxemics are replaced with visual representation on the screen. Here ‘play’ and the participants’ own will to investigate the non-traditional possibilities of this process became tantamount.