Shift Happens - part 1

As a dyslexic the process of turning mental imagery in to text is one of the hardest challenges I contend with when I work. It is my desire to share experiences, share my discoveries that drives me on to manifest the words from the pictures and mental movies of encounters stored in my mind. On occasions the events and encounters overwhelm my senses leaving me with stuff crammed in my thoughts with out a way out. The two spheres that my working world revolves around is Technology, predominantly the Internet and Theatre. What excites me is the innovation driving them both. So Shift Happens, a conference for the theatre industry reflecting on how technology is converging with performance and creative processes to innovate, drive and mold company futures was an exciting prospect.

Even better I was invited by Artistic Director, Marcus Romer to take part by facilitating a Social Media Surgery of sorts where delegates could find out more about the potential of Web 2 and how the theatre industry can implement and incorporate it into their daily lifes. I discovered that with the use of just a couple of well chosen web 2 tools I know I could help theatre companies very easily create and feed with minimal effort and cost but a tremendous amount of fun, a dynamic live web presence including on the road/on tour coverage streamed live or uploaded to a home page producing video content, generate chat and buzz to promote a companies profile and location around the country, improve communication and the quality of the communication channel between office and company while on the road, build a community for the company and help the performers and creative team keep in touch with their lives and people that matter outside of the current production. All with services available on line for free.

The void between contacts can be frustrating, reconnection with your life after being so immersed in a show can be hard. Social Media approached sensibly and strategically by a theatre company can have enormous benefit for the company business and the companies creative team and performers. Everyone can win. I'm going to tell you how.

But first I want to report back on the amazing speakers who delivered talks at Shift Happens and reflect on Pilot Theatre's vision where performance and technology combine and converge reverberating through the company creating a thriving business and innovative productions. Their mission tag line "Inspiring Creativity" is right on the nail.