Cinematic theatre

Cinematic Theatre can be briefly described as a fusion of live performance and the magic of the big screen. By utilising the best dramatic devices that each art form has to covey a story and entertain an audience; the possibilities to create interesting narratives and stage dynamics through the synergy of stage and cinematic design is exciting.

Brad Jennings and Steven Maxwell started working together as colleagues teaching in Townsville where they started to produce new original work. Their first collaboration was in 2001 they produced Blowout, written and directed by Jennings, at the Cow Shed, James Cook University.

In 2002 they founded the company as a partnership and the first production was a new play called Advanced Screening, written and directed by Jennings. This was the first time they integrated video into the live performance and although it was a small 3m x 2m projection screen, hung above the stage, it worked well. The show premiered in October at The Dance North Theatre, Townsville and was commended as the most outstanding project for 2002 by the Thuringowa RADF committee.

In 2003 they co-wrote, directed and produced Loose Ends, a contemporary drama for adults at The Dance North Theatre. It was during the development of this project that Brad and Steven decided to specialize in integrating visual content and performance, using the vision to create a continuous experience. When discussing how to describe and market the show, the term Cinematic Theatre was coined as a title for the style of theatrical experience they wanted to produce; which is related to how they described the video content as cinematic sequences when writing and producing Loose Ends.

Cinematic theatre is a contemporary style of drama that revolves around using pre-edited and live vision sequences to be projected onto screens and surfaces. These sequences are then integrated with the live performance to create dramatic meaning that interacts with the dramatic action on stage.

The integrated use of projection during scenes and scene changes allows the stage action to become continuous, therefore creating a suspension of disbelief that engages the audience. In the ever increasing technological environment, more and more information and storytelling is being brought to us through visual images and screens; contemporary audiences are able to read layered visual texts.

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Wikipedia