Pushing the limits

The first virtual theatre festival that I participated in was “Isra-Drama: International Exposure Of Israeli Theatre 2020”. I had never been to Israel and I still have not been to Israel.

This past June, I participated in yet another festival I’ve never been to in-person: Germany’s Impulse Theatre Festival. The festival usually takes place in three cities — Cologne, Dusseldorf and Mulheim an der Ruhr, and has three main parts: Showcase (performances), Academy (workshops, panels and lectures) and City Project.

Most of the productions in the showcase were performed in venues with live audiences and streamed live for viewers around the world. A few were completely online. I was able to watch four performances in the showcase: Playback (in-theatre and live-streamed); Body Of Knowledge (At Home) (WhatsApp calls and video conference); Love Me, Tender:…