Site-specificity and virtual reality

Can site-specificity extend to virtual locations? This chapter seeks to broaden the types of locations that may be considered site-specific by addressing virtual reality environments. We have created virtual models of historical theatres that no longer exist in actual form, but that can nevertheless be explored today in real time, either on screen or via a VR headset. Our research has identified different ways in which users engage with space in detailed and ‘realistic’ immersive environments. While the work has to this point been focused on historical practice, we can now explore how such venues operate as if they were living locations. Our case study is the Queen’s Theatre in Adelaide, built in 1841 at the beginning of the existence of the South Australian colony. The virtual version of this theatre speaks directly to its extensive and fascinating history while also conversing with the current location and the wider location in which it is positioned. If more ‘conventional’ site-specific performance requires a location to dictate the creative process, we explore how VR works as the premise for creating new locations for performance today by investigating how this quasi-real is activated and animated.