 |
| Entrance to "The World of John Steinbeck" from the EXPLORE Welcome Center |
The Kitely Grid & Tacoma , WA
EXPLORE
is an online tool designed to add to the
play-going experience of audience members by presenting source material and
related information to support the production in an engaging, interactive
format. The World of John Steinbeck can be accessed online with the
download of a free viewing program 24/7. Patrons can walk through the
world of Steinbeck’s novella, exploring freely, using an avatar. Clickable
information links guide visitors to a variety of information ranging from
biographical, to historical and cultural. Live presentations of the
source text and Steinbeck's letters provide additional opportunities to gain
understanding of the playwright and the world in which the play was created.
"This
continues to be an exciting and enlightening process," shared Chris
Serface, Tacoma Little Theatre Managing Artistic Director, "Being on the
ground level of innovation like this means we are learning something new every
time we do a project." The current EXPLORE project was
preceded by Anton Chekov and the Absurd in 2016, and The Great
Gatsby Online in 2015.
"There
are a lot of very interesting educational approaches being applied in virtual
environments and using immersion," said Judy Cullen, former Tacoma
Little Theatre Director and current lead of Seanchai Library (aka Caledonia
Skytower), "The challenge is getting people to try something new."
Cullen will be available at Of Mice and Men performances at a
dedicated computer station in the theatre’s Lobby to answer questions and guide
visitors through the project. "We hope that we can lower the
intimidation factor enough that folks will go home and take advantage of Explore
on their own."
 |
| The waterside camp where readers first meet George Milton and Lennie Small as represented in EXPORE |
Of
Mice and Men was published in 1937, and
was Steinbeck's first attempt at writing in the form of novel-play termed a
"play-novelette" by one critic. It tells the story of George
Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from
place to place in California in search of new
job opportunities during the Great Depression in the United States . Steinbeck
originally titled it Something That Happened (referring to the events of
the book as "something that happened" because nobody can be really
blamed for the tragedy that unfolds). However, he changed the title after
reading Robert Burns's poem To a Mouse. Burns's poem tells of the regret
the narrator feels for having destroyed the home of a mouse while plowing his
field.
Of
Mice and Men, directed by Niclas Olson,
plays January 20 - February 5 in nine public performances.
Live readings from
the novella, and from Steinbeck's letters will take place online in The
World of John Steinbeck on January 28th at Noon, January 31st at 7 pm, and
February 5th at 11 am. Visitors new to virtual worlds are advised to
open accounts and get oriented to how they work well in advance of when live
events are scheduled to begin.
Information
on EXPLORE The World of John Steinbeck including "Getting
Started", an "Avatar Guide", and links to opening a free user
account on the Kitely Grid are available at http://exploreseanchai.blogspot.com/. EXPLORE can be found in Kitely on the Open
Metaverse at grid.kitely.com:8002:EXPLORESeanchai
Tacoma
Little Theatre’s production of Of Mice and Men is funded, in part, by a
grant from the Washington State Arts Commission.
No comments:
Post a Comment