Hierarchy of Needs in Immersive Theater [BEFORE THE EXPERIENCE] 1/3
Good.
Surrounding an experience, there are basic needs that that must be satisfied before the audience even enters into the immersive storyline.
- Physiological needs: air, water, food, shelter.
How does the audience enter into the space? The moment they come from off the street outside the venue, they are entering within your world with which your experience exists. It needs to be an inviting space, somehow an extension or introduction into the world that the story is built inside. Having some sort of food and drink, especially if it is an offering rather than a purchase, are easy ways to gain the trust of the audience before the show even starts. Sleep No More does a beautiful job at creating a rich world the moment you enter into the space. There is live music with inviting characters and bartenders. Because this is set like a cabaret bar space, purchasing drinks is integrated into the world of this beginning space. While the audience is waiting for their entry time, they are able to relax, breathe the air of the space, drink beverages curated to the aesthetic of the world, and enjoy music that supports the general time period presented within the narrative. Doing this automatically gains our audience’s trust of the environment and allows them to prepare their imagination.
2. Safety needs: rules, ritual, order.
It is key to establish some sort of order in the space, and this should be maintained throughout the experience, but especially early on. Even chaos should be designed with specificity. If there is unwanted chaos before the experience has begun, the audience is put in a state of stress that will distance them from being able to soften into the experience. Humans find safety in ritual because it is something that is consistent and known, and have adopted rituals and traditions since the beginning of existence. What ritual could you have for each audience member that inducts them into the space?
Along with security, the audience needs to know the rules and laws of the world if you want them make choices and engage in your space. One of the biggest fears an audience member will have is not knowing what to do or how to interact. Being that immersive theater encompasses a whole new set of rules that might be different for every production, what are the things the audience needs to know even before entering the experience? Will they be touched? Can they speak to other characters? What if they have to use the bathroom? This information could be read or spoken to in a more official manner. A narrator or bard archetype could explain this to the group before bringing them into the experience. Or perhaps each person is told this privately in a ritualistic sense. Or the easiest but not as personal way is to list the rules with their ticket purchase or program upon entry. It all depends on what story your telling, and how this can complement the story that is being told within the world you have designed for the audience.
If these two basic needs are met, the audience is able to leave their egos at the door and reset so that they are clean slates ready to enter into the experience. After all, that is what humans are after in the theatrical setting. It feels like an escape, but instead it is immersion within themselves, making space for their selves and imaginations to expand further and deeper than in their current reality.
These needs are inherent in human survival. After all, without survival is death, and then humans are just cold empty vessels. Survival is not only needed, but expected. When expectations are not met, humans are forced to adjust and adapt, but this causes distress and discomfort. And since this is found in the everyday reality of humans, design an experience that supports your audience’s desire to thrive instead of just survive. If you want the audience to be exactly where you want them at the start of an experience, meet their expectations, then exceed them, and they will be at your fingertips the moment they step into the playing space.
