Royal Shakespeare Company Will Consider Using AI and Other Technology For Future Productions

The Royal Shakespeare Company is looking into using artificial intelligence (AI) and other technology in its upcoming productions, the BBC reports. The RSC will utilize a £13.5m government investment to lead pilot production projects in the West Midlands and Merseyside. They are also slated to partner with US-based tech and media festival South by Southwest.

The company, which previously used motion-capture technology for a performance of Dream in 2021, will now prioritize driving growth in the technology space. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said that the funding would support training, research and development. Dream, an online adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, was broadcast online during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Read our review here.

The West Midlands will receive £6.75m to use amongst firms specialising in creative technology, including "AI and immersive technology", virtual reality, augmented reality, and more.

In addition to the RSC, the CreaTech Frontiers partnership will also involve the Birmingham Opera Group, Birmingham Repertory Theatre, and Birmingham Contemporary Music Group.

Additionally, £6.75m has been allocated to the MusicFutures cluster, which will partner with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic to fund training in innovative technologies to make the "live music sector more environmentally sustainable".

Read the original story on BBC.

About the Royal Shakespeare Company

Based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England, the company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratford-upon-Avon, and on tour across the UK and internationally. As well as the plays of Shakespeare and his contemporaries, the RSC produces new work from living artists.

Photo Credit: Stuart Martin (Dream, 2021)

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