Gray Area Grand Theater: Multi-City Live Theater in VR with Ferryman Collective

On November 10, our Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Silicon Valley chapters are jointly hosting a live staging of Uncanny Alley: A New Day, the Emmy-winning live theatrical experience in virtual reality. It performs simultaneously at Gray Area in San Francisco and in Los Angeles: one cast across two stages. Brendan Bradley (San Francisco) and Whitton Frank (Los Angeles), members of the Ferryman Collective who originated these roles, transition seamlessly between improvisation and the scripted hour-long drama, portraying 15 characters. They are joined on each stage by two audience participants, in headset and fully embodied as characters in the virtual world, who can say or do anything to influence the story. Each audience watches its live performers interact with the parallel stage 350 miles away. The production is written and directed by Stephen Butchko, with the world created by Rick Treweek, technical direction by Screaming Color, and artistic direction by Deidre V Lyon. The two-venue architecture was developed by Bradley, who also performs in San Francisco, building on his Edinburgh Fringe 2024 premiere, which ran on-stage, in VR, and livestreamed simultaneously. The question the evening poses: does scene-partner chemistry survive 350 miles? After the performance, the cast will lead us on a “backstage tour” of the company’s groundbreaking techniques in virtual show control. They’ll discuss the technology being developed at Ferryman Collective, and how both locations projected the real-time VR experience at each other’s site. They’ll answer questions about real-time technology that they use for this hour long performance. We would be glad to have you join us.