The Encyclopedia of Interactive Performance

A magician climbs the steps to a platform, high above the stage. He is covered with a cloth. There’s no place he can hide. The platform is raised up into the air. At this point, if you try to figure out how the magician is going to disappear, you’re too late. It doesn’t matter how closely you watch. The trick has already been done.

Interactive performance is a bit like doing a magic trick. Like the disappearing magician, much of the success relies on what happens before the magic occurs. It starts with the onboarding process.

The onboarding process begins with first contact. It isn’t when people arrive. It’s when they first learn about the experience. It might be in the form of an ad, a website, a social media post, or a conversation. Whatever form first contact takes, it sets people’s expectations. If you don’t set the expectations, people will set their own. Clearly identify the tone of the experience. Is it funny, dramatic, scary, or socially relevant? Make that clear. Also be clear about the fact that audience participation is involved. Some people don’t like participatory shows, even if they’re not the ones participating. The last thing you want is audience members who wish they were somewhere else.

The next step in the onboarding process is when people buy their tickets. Make sure that it’s clearly communicated how participation works. If it’s optional, make that clear. When people don’t feel forced to participate, they’re often more comfortable about doing so. If they can choose the level of participation, communicate that. Introduce the guidelines of participation so people know what’s expected and how they’ll be treated.

Next is the time when people arrive at the event. Make the arrival process as easy as possible. When parking or finding the venue is difficult, people get frustrated. That influences their mental state when it comes time to play. Even if there are difficulties that you can’t do anything about, you can always make people feel welcome when they arrive. A welcoming tone makes people feel good. When they feel good, they play better.

The next waypoint is one of the most important steps along the onboarding journey—the portal. This is a point between the real world that people are coming from, and the fictional world that they’re about to engage in. The portal lays out the guidelines of engagement and gives people the chance to ask questions about the experience. The host of the portal should be out-of-story, not a character in the show. If the host is part of the fiction, it calls into question whether the information shared is also fictional. People need clarity to play fearlessly. Keep the portal out of story.

When people leave the portal, they enter the world where the fiction resides. Here, it’s important to set the tone of the experience through the environment. Immersive shows often do a good job of this. Theatrical shows can be more challenging. Sometimes people expect interactive performance to be like comedy improv. If your content is comedic, they’re with you. If it’s dramatic, you need to reframe their expectations. Whatever the tone of the show, use pre-show lighting and sound design to set the tone of the experience. If there are programs, set expectations through the program notes. People will go new places with you, but first you need to set their expectations.

If you’re going to make magic with interactive performance, pay as much attention to the onboarding process as you do to the show. Your spects will play better because of it.