RSC Faith: Remote Theatre Live Streaming
Five remote live programmes across Coventry for RSC Faith, using frame accurate cellular feeds, remote direction, BSL, captions and audio description.
Five moving productions across one city
Faith was a 24-hour Royal Shakespeare Company and Coventry City of Culture co-production built around four promenade plays and a final Ceremony of Light. we had to turn five programme slots on 11 September 2021 into live online broadcasts while performers and audiences moved through distinct routes across Coventry.
The camera teams worked on foot for 12 hours, with Jay Rozanski describing a 600-person audience moving alongside the work. The wider digital delivery also needed to incorporate BSL, live captions and audio-description support while remote direction and reliable contribution continued across streets, buildings and changing mobile-network conditions.
A remote workflow built around movement
We built the remote-production workflow around AVIWEST bonded contribution and a central Blackmagic ATEM Constellation master-control system. For The Return, five moving camera feeds plus a redundant path were aligned frame-accurately after six weeks of tests, route surveys and mobile-network planning.
Unity Intercom carried director talkback and tally to phones mounted on the crews’ Easyrigs. This helped the teams respond to live calls through an approximately 1.8-second remote delay. We delivered five programme masters, isolated camera recordings, multiview records and accessible programme versions.
In numbers
A city became the stage
Faith was co produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company and Coventry City of Culture Trust in collaboration with City Voices and Coventry’s faith communities. Four new plays explored faith, hope, loss and belonging through stories that unfolded across the streets of Coventry.
The Messenger, The Return, The Arrival and Generation 20 each followed a different route. The final Ceremony of Light gathered the project at Millennium Place, where the public programme invited the audience to create a tapestry of 500 flames.
Five RSC Faith theatre live streams in one day
Our online sequence moved from The Messenger to The Return, The Arrival, Generation 20 and the Ceremony of Light. The five programmes connected residential streets, Coventry Cathedral, Broadgate, the Belgrade Theatre, north Coventry and Millennium Place to audiences watching online.
Each programme needed its own camera path, access plan and transmission route. We delivered all five programme masters, individual camera recordings and multiview captures across a complete day of RSC Faith theatre live streaming.
Testing the city before going live
The Return required five moving camera feeds and a redundant contribution path to reach production control room in sync. We worked with AVIWEST for six weeks on tests and trials, checking routes, mobile coverage and the cell towers most likely to create a dropout.
The resulting bonded contribution workflow supplied frame accurate feeds to an ATEM Constellation production system. Network switching plans and the spare path gave the director practical resilience as the camera teams moved through changing streets and buildings.
Remote direction for crews in motion
The operators carried lightweight camera systems on Easyrigs, supported by assistants who handled batteries and accessories during 12 hours on foot. Unity Intercom linked the moving teams to production control room and integrated with the ATEM system for tally.
Phones mounted on the rigs placed tally information in the operators’ eyeline. Broadcast director Sally Duff allowed for the approximately 1.8 second remote delay by giving the teams additional warning before a camera move or change of shot.
Accessibility travelled with the production
The public online offer included BSL and live captioning, with audio description support across the wider production. Five live caption windows were scheduled for YouTube, matching the sequence of the four plays and the final ceremony.
We also delivered separate audio described programme recordings for the four promenade plays. Accessibility was planned alongside cameras, contribution, comms and distribution as part of the core remote live production workflow.
A demanding production with durable proof
Jay Rozanski described a 600 person audience moving through Coventry with the performance and camera teams. The day created five finished programme masters alongside the isolated camera, multiview and access records needed for review and future edits.
“It was probably the most challenging event I’ve ever worked on.”
Jay Rozanski, speaking to Definition Magazine
The RSC’s annual review records Faith as a major outdoor project co created with local residents. Our contribution gave that city wide work a live digital route to audiences beyond Coventry.
For practical planning advice, read our remote production workflow guide. Explore our Coventry Moves livestream for related production work.
Frequently asked questions
How can several moving cameras stay in sync during a remote live stream?
A tested bonded contribution system sends the camera feeds into one receive and vision mixing workflow. For Faith: The Return, we aligned five moving feeds frame accurately and maintained a separate redundant contribution path.
Can promenade theatre be live streamed while the performance moves across a city?
Yes. The production needs lightweight camera rigs, a surveyed route, resilient connectivity, remote talkback and a clear tally system. We combined those elements for five Faith programmes across Coventry.
Can accessibility be built into a live theatre broadcast?
Yes. Faith’s online delivery incorporated BSL, live captions and audio description support as planned parts of the production workflow.
What resilience does a city wide remote production need?
Route testing, mobile network planning, a spare contribution path, reliable intercom, isolated camera recordings and local programme records all help protect a moving live production.
Planning a live production that needs to keep moving?
Talk to us about cameras, contribution, comms, accessibility and distribution for theatre, culture and city wide events.
