Royal Shakespeare Company to consider AI for theatre productions

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is to look at using artificial intelligence (AI) and other immersive technology in its productions as part of a £13.5m government investment.

The Stratford-upon-Avon based theatre company will lead pilot production projects in the West Midlands and Merseyside alongside US-based tech and media festival South by Southwest.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said the funding would support training, research and development across a range of creative projects "using new technology and driving growth".

"Talent is everywhere but opportunity is not," she said.

The RSC previously used motion-capture technology in 2021 for a performance of Dream for remote audiences during the pandemic.

The West Midlands will receive a £6.75m share of the pot, aimed at firms specialising in creative technology and industry working with partners including the RSC.

The type of technology has not been decided, but the project will look at "AI and immersive technology" and also consider virtual reality, augmented reality and employing 3D modelling and animation techniques.

The CreaTech Frontiers partnership will also involve the Birmingham Opera Group, Birmingham Repertory Theatre, and Birmingham Contemporary Music Group.

A further £6.75m has also been allocated to Liverpool's combined authority's academic and private sector programme, the MusicFutures cluster.

Working with Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and the Liverpool M&S Bank Arena, the cluster will fund training for musicians, teachers and business using technology to make the "live music sector more environmentally sustainable".

This could mean building simulated environments as well as having computer-generated creations.

Nandy said: "Liverpool and Merseyside hold a special place in our nation's music landscape and this funding will support imagination and experimentation across the city and region.

"Birmingham and the West Midlands have a rich industrial history, and we are putting them at the forefront of a potential new industry developing the amazing technology that will revolutionise visual effects in film, theatre and gaming."