Immersive Theatres

Josephine Machon is Senior Research Fellow in Contemporary Performance Practice at Middlesex University, London, UK. She is the author of (Syn)aesthetics: Redefining Visceral Performance (2009, 2011). Josephine is also the co-editor of Performance and Technology (2006), Sensualities/Textualities and Technologies (2010) and Identity, Performance and Technology (2012) and joint editor of the Palgrave Macmillan Series in Performance and Technology.

• List of IllustrationsAcknowledgementsPrefaceContributing Artists and their PracticeIntroduction: Immersive Theatres Intimacy and Immediacy in Contemporary PerformancePART I1. Definitions and Details2. Features & Finer Details: A Scale of Immersivity3. Immersive PerspectivesPART II4. Introduction: Immersion, intimacy and Immediacy in Practice5. Michael Morris of Artangel6. Felix Barrett of Punchdrunk7. Bruce Gladwin of Back To Back Theatre8. Lundahl & Seitl9. Silvia Mercuriali10. Tassos Stevens of Coney11. Sam Holdsworth of Nimble Fish12. Punchdrunk Enrichment13. Louise Ann Wilson14. Bill Mitchell and Sue Hill of WildWorks15. Adrian Howells16. Tristan Sharps of dreamthinkspeak17. Conclusion: Immersive TheatresRecommended Reading and ResearchBibliographyIndex.

This book comes at a potential tipping point for those of us who study and practise theatre. In the age of Web 2.0, immersive practice looks forward to a rich style of developing affective storytelling and connection via theatrical performance. At the heart of this book is an assessment of the state of theatre at the outset of an existential crisis, looking for ways to bring its audience back into the fold.