The National Theatre showcases All Kinds of Limbo via Virtual Reality
The National Theatre has announced a show that will allow audiences to watch worldwide in a number of different ways in order to democratise access to the arts.
All Kinds of Limbo XR can be watched via a Virtual Reality headset, as Augmented Reality on a phone or tablet, or as a desktop experience.
The unique musical performance, All Kinds of Limbo, was developed alongside the NT’s 2019 production of Andrea Levy’s award- winning novel Small Island.
Writer and vocalist Nubiya Brandon, composer Raffy Bushman and the Nu Shape Orchestra will take the audience on a musical journey inspired by the influence of Caribbean culture on the UK’s music scene.
Ms Brandon will tell her own story of a life in limbo across the genres of reggae, grime, classical and calypso.
She said: “All Kinds of Limbo is an incredibly important piece to me.
“We take the audience on a journey through the UK’s kaleidoscopic musical movements and by doing so, two stories are placed alongside each other: a timeline of my own accord of the cultural and social changes since the Windrush with an insight into the catalogue of musical memorabilia that I see as a warped cultural understanding of myself.
“And also my own story of a life in limbo: the struggles of being born with estranged roots, striving for an identity that is uncertain – whilst purely being a product of my surroundings.
“I’m so delighted that international audiences will be able to experience it in multiple forms.”
Immersive technologies will transport audiences into the heart of Ms Brandon’s performance space.
The NT utilised Microsoft’s mixed reality capture technology to record holographic performances of Nubiya which were then placed in the virtual environments.
Toby Coffey, Founder of the National Theatre’s Immersive Storytelling Studio, said: “With each project our studio aims to push, in an appropriate way, the evolution of the form and the audience experience.
“With this project we asked the question – how can we create a ‘universal performance space’ where audiences can experience one performance in differing formats that suit their technology, their needs and their preferences?
“I’m delighted we’ve been able to develop this idea and present All Kinds of Limbo across VR, AR and desktop versions, giving international audiences access to the piece.”
All Kinds of Limbo was first presented at the National Theatre in 2019 as a communal VR experience alongside the production of Small Island in the Olivier theatre.
It then had its international premiere at Sundance Film Festival in January 2020 and was at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam in November 2020.