The Digital Stage: Technology and the Future of Performing Arts

The Digital Stage: Technology and the Future of Performing Arts explores the implications and applications of contemporary and emergent digital technologies, from a leadership perspective as well as an audience engagement and an artistic and production perspective.

From this broad survey of the industry, readers will develop a new understanding for the use of digital technologies in the creation, staging, performing, marketing, distributing and selling of the performing arts. It is essential for the sector to explore and proactively consider adoption of new and disruptive technologies, to ensure the long-term viability of arts institutions and for the sector at large to remain relevant in a rapidly changing context. The Digital Stage seeks to frame a strategic view of the performing arts sector through this lens to understand new practices, identify challenges and barriers ahead and determine key digital technologies that can enable change.

The book is organized into three parts: Technology Next, Technology Now and Technology Nexus, and will be of interest to arts managers, production managers and leaders in the performing arts industry.

Helen Kerr has over 25 years’ experience as the leader of one of North America’s pre-eminent, research driven, innovation, Foresight, design and strategy companies. Multi-disciplinary approaches to highly complex problems have been the undercurrent of her career and she brings business analytics and creative thinking to all projects. Helen has facilitated major research and strategy projects with the South Pacific Community, Southern Africa climate change partners, City of Chicago, Creative State Michigan, Western University, Elections Canada, and Ministry of Transportation of Ontario. Helen’s first degree is in Environmental Science and she studied Industrial Design at the Ontario College of Art. Helen has designed award-winning products and systems for global distribution. Helen also teaches Healthcare Innovation and Strategic Foresight at OCAD University and is Practitioner in Residence for the Future Cities Program at the University of Waterloo. Helen was featured in a CBC documentary ＂Great Minds of Design＂ and is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.

Nigel Smith has 25 years’ experience with diverse international clients in a variety of sectors including the performing arts, architecture, healthcare, transportation, philanthropy, universities, art museums, cities, fashion retailers, and wealth management. As creative director, Nigel Smith has collaborated on research and design projects with Harvard University, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. His role includes research, strategy, branding and communication, graphics, and information design. Nigel taught at Harvard University for seven years at the Graduate School of Design. He approaches his work with an assessment of context, and viability. His design process is a dialogue with clients where research, prototyping, critique, humour and writing are used with the formal elements of design to solve problems. Currently he is exploring guerrilla signage as a catalyst for placemaking