As events that would draw crowds under normal circumstances go virtual, an upcoming performance from American Conservatory Theater centers on building connections in digital spaces as a central theme. “In Love and Warcraft,” a play by Madhuri Shekar, is a romantic comedy about a young woman’s exploration of her identity in an online role-playing game and expressing it in the real world. Performances as part of ACT’s InterACT at Home initiative will be livestreamed Sept. 4-12 and will be available on demand Sept. 18-25. Peter J. Kuo, associate conservatory director and the director of “In Love and Warcraft,” said audience members have connected to one another in immediate and engaged ways during virtual live performances.
“I’m used to building these friendships and relationships online, but other people aren’t. And so because of this pandemic, suddenly everyone’s forced to do that. And I know a lot of people got really depressed and frustrated and scared about the whole thing. And what was great to me about this play was being able to say, we can do it. Even though the characters aren’t all building these relationships purely online, because there’s a lot of ‘in person’ interaction in the play — I think it does showcase that both are relevant and important and useful.”
— Peter J. Kuo
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