Ken Davenport is best known for producing the current Broadway revival of Godspell and Altar Boyz, which won the 2005 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway Musical (among others). He’s also a fierce advocate of bringing the theater industry into the digital age—through things like social media marketing and allowing theater-goers to tweet during performances.
When people talk about “Theater 2.0,” what do they mean?
Tomorrow’s audience won’t be satisfied by just sitting back and watching a “play.” Tomorrow’s theater audience have grown up on interactive entertainment like video games, reality television, etc. Theater 2.0 takes those elements and merges it with a traditional theatergoing experience. It used to be that people talked about a ‘4th Wall’ in theater. I don’t think that exists like it did. And personally, I’d like to help bring it down.
In what other ways is the theater industry evolving?
Our shows are built differently now, with more up-to-date technology in lighting, scenery and especially projections (they are all the rage these days). One of the most significant changes, however, is in our marketing and how we reach our consumers. The traditional Broadway theater-goer is about 45 years old or older…and that age group is just starting to take to social media, etc. So we’re having to reinvent how we reach our audience. And for someone like me, that reinvention is part of the fun.