"Ian McKellen will not be present at this performance. That's the gist of the email reminder you receive from the Shed before heading there to see An Ark, the "mixed reality" play written by Simon Stephens, directed by Sarah Frankcom, and brainstormed into being by producer Todd Eckert. Though the show is a slight 47 minutes long, it comes heavily padded with special circumstances."
"Coat and bag check is mandatory; you stow your shoes in a cubby before taking your seat in the red-carpeted space; and, of course, you wear VR glasses. (The nearsighted who haven't worn contact lenses have to check their own glasses in exchange for a corrective version of the high-tech goggles, likely a dealbreaker for some theatergoers.) It's a lot of fuss - not to mention a lot of money -"
Ian McKellen is not physically present; his prerecorded performance appears in VR. An Ark is presented at the Shed as a mixed-reality play by Simon Stephens, directed by Sarah Frankcom, and produced by Todd Eckert, running about 47 minutes. Audience procedures include mandatory coat and bag check, stowing shoes, and wearing VR goggles, with corrective versions provided for contact-lens wearers. The production bills itself as a world premiere and the first play for mixed reality but the effect is unconvincing. Four prerecorded actors—McKellen, Golda Rosheuvel, Arinzé Kene, and Rosie Sheehy—appear in floating chairs and deliver flat, adjective-like performances. The performers suggest that both they and the audience are dead, offering reassurance with lines like "Don't panic" and "Don't be scared."
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