E-Interview: Glenn Brown, Manager of the Sanderson Centre

1. Do you believe that art changed for technology? Or has technology
changed for art?

I think art and technology are so dependent on each other that they drive
innovation across both areas. Sometimes a technical capability will inspire
a theatrical application and sometimes the creative need will spark the
development of an entire commercial industry.

2. How do you believe technology has changed theater?

So much of theatre involves solving challenges in creative ways. Technology
has become a tool that allows challenges to be met and, in some cases,
inspires new approaches that create new challenges.

3. In your opinion, has technology made theater more appealing for today's
audience?
Live entertainment, whether theatre or concerts is most successful when it
creates a connection between the performance and the audience. I think that
the entertainment industry has mixed results in this area. The use of
moving lights and video in concerts is an example of stimulating people
visually as well as through the music. I have also seen the use of video
being used just because it is possible instead of as an element of the
storytelling.

4. In your opinion, in what ways has technology made theater better? Worse?
For the most part, technology has given designers the tools to bring their
ideas to life. Some of this technology is seen by the audience but there
are also all the design tools and automation that is woven into a
production simply to make it more affordable to present. Unfortunately,
there are times when the smoke and mirrors of a new cool capability is used
instead of a low-tech solution that would be more appropriate to the
performance. In both cases, it is the designer that determines if these new
tools improve or detract from the performance.

5. In your opinion, has classic theater being preformed today, been
criticized because of technology or the lack of it? Is it better to use
technology to “make the performance come alive” for the viewers or stick to
classic ways of preforming, such as a trapdoor in the stage or the use of
props?

I think the creative community as a whole has matured to the point that
each solution to our creative challenges is made using the most appropriate
method. Sometimes that can be through costuming and traditional stagecraft
and sometimes the solution involves hydraulic scenery and video production.