The Encyclopedia of Interactive Performance

As an inter-actor, you need the ability to read spects—to know what they’re thinking, what they’re feeling, and what makes them tick. When you know these things you can engage a spect and craft a truly personalized story.

How to read spects

To read spects, you look for clues. Pay attention to what they like, dislike, and don’t understand. Note what they’re good at and what matters to them. Here are the areas to pay attention to.

• Point of view – what they think or feel
• Default mode – how they tend to engage
• Priorities – what matters most to them
• Values – what principles are important to them
• Strengths – what they know about or do well
• Spect archetype – the type of spect they are

Don’t try to take in everything at once. Start with the spect’s point of view. Note the other clues as they show up.

As you read the spect, do it with a soft focus. There’s no need to be constantly looking at them. Use peripheral vision or a casual glance. Soft focus keeps spects from feeling on the spot, while giving you useful information.

There are four key focus areas to observe when reading spects.

Face – The face offers many clues. How do the eyes look? What’s the mouth doing? What expression or emotional state do you see? Pleased? Confused? Curious?

Body – Observe the entire body. Are their limbs open or crossed? Are their hands in their pockets or fingers fidgeting? What direction are their feet pointed? Are they leaning forward or back?

Language – Pay attention to the words that spects use. Which ones are emphasized? Are they focused on thoughts or feelings? What point of view is communicated, not just through words, but also tone of voice?

Behaviors – Take note of how spects respond to characters and situations. Are they eager or hesitant to take action? Do they like or dislike particular characters? When things happen to them, how do they tend to respond?

As you’re taking in the clues, here are some useful tips to make your read more accurate.

Take in the gestalt – Reading a spect involves the synthesis of many elements—how they appear, how they respond, and what they initiate. No single element gives you the whole story. Use a holistic perspective to get a good read.

Trust the physical – If what the spect says contradicts what the spect does, trust the physical clues. Words may lie, but the body tells the truth.

Drop your bias – If you assume that others are like you, reading spects is difficult. Something obvious to you may be foreign to them. What’s a weakness in your eyes may be a virtue in theirs. Don’t let your biases keep you from understanding others.

Guess and test – Reading a spect involves some guesswork. When you make a guess, test it. Based on your guess, do something that you anticipate will elicit a particular response. If your hypothesis is right, they’ll respond in the way you anticipate. If not, make a new guess based on how they responded.

Reading spects in action

Your first read is often a thin slice of the spect. Based on this observation, you can generate offers that get spects activated because you’re tapping into things they already know. As you make offers, you’re also reading responses. Are they confused or hesitant? Clarify the context. Do they not like what’s going on? Modify your offer, and note their preferred play style.

The inter-actor, Caleb, is squatted on the floor as a tan and athletic spect steps in wearing deck shoes and no socks. Caleb begins to sew, glances up at the spect, and then back down to his work. “The captain expects us to have this sail mended by dawn, Mister Garrick.” Caleb continues to sew while taking in the spect’s response with soft focus. The spect says, “OK…” and looks around. Caleb pulls a second needle from his pocket and says, “I’ve got another needle right here.” The spect takes the needle, squats down, and begins to sew.

While continuing to play, read beneath the surface of spects’ responses. Are they thinkers or feelers? What are their values? What is their point of view? All these elements help you craft offers that they’ll be drawn to or repelled by, depending on the needs of the story.

While mending the sail, Garrick and Caleb discuss the conditions onboard the ship. The spect comments on how poorly the ship is being run, and how the captain should take better care of his men. Caleb muses, “Sounds like you once had a ship of your own.” “Yeah, a long time ago.” Caleb bemoans how the crew suffers, while the captain drinks himself into a stupor every night. The spect suggests that “Someone should do something.” From inside his cabin, the captain bellows for Caleb to bring him another flask of ale. The spect gives a look of concern to his crewmate.

Recognizing spects’ investment comes entirely from reading their emotional responses. How do they feel about what’s happening and the characters that surround them? How do they enjoy playing? Give them more of that. What do they care about and what matters to them? Challenge these things to deepen their investment.

Caleb grumbles, “Let him get his own drink.” The captain storms on deck, slaps Caleb, and snarls “I said, bring me some ale, boy.” The spect offers, “Here, you can have mine.” The captain spins to face the spect. “I don’t want any of your swill. Are you the captain of this ship? No? Then shut your gob! Or would you rather be in the brig?” The captain stumbles back to his cabin. Other crew members come on deck and discuss how the captain has gone a bit crazy. Caleb tells them how Garrick stood up to the captain, and the crew is duly impressed. One of the men suggests that they should take a stand against the captain. Caleb frets, “But that’d be mutiny.” A small, sly smile appears on the spect’s lips.

Reading the spect is also essential to identifying the story lesson and story goal. Listen and observe well. Both are story elements that you get from reading the spect. Even if spects don’t explicitly articulate them in words, your read of their values and priorities provides essential information when identifying the story goal and story lesson.

Reflecting back to the spect’s expressed concern for his crew mates, the inter-actors identify a steadfast story lesson of “Take care of your fellow man.” The fact that the spect said he was once a captain a long time ago, and that he seems to relish the idea of a mutiny gives rise to a story goal of “Regain the status of a captain by getting the ship and crew safely back home.”

When you become adept at reading spects, you can detect what they’re thinking and feeling, predict their responses, and anticipate their likes and dislikes. This knowledge makes it possible for you to play stories that are informed by who spects are and how they play. That’s what interactive performance is truly about.