THEatre ACCELERATOR

The Heroine's Journey in XR

An immersive musical theatre intensive development accelerator harnessing augmented and virtual reality technologies to advance the future of storytelling.

Upcoming class: April 24, 2023 – May 15, 2023

Applications are now closed.

How It Works

Beginning with Book, Music, and Lyrics, participants develop their shows in a collaborative virtual environment.

Utilizing cutting-edge technology and lean development methods, mentors interact with participants, while THEatre ACCELERATOR team provides frequent feedback throughout the iterative process.

Staff and storytellers collaborate to design a custom distribution plan that includes brand development and audience analysis to get stories in front of the right audiences.

In the New Reality Edition, storytellers explore how AR and VR can be used to help create and/or distribute their musicals. As participants in the inaugural class, teams receive cutting edge technology to assist in their experimentation and investigation along with access to some of the top professionals in the emerging field today.

Applying the model that accelerates technology start-ups, THEatre ACCELERATOR treats storytellers as founders creating an opportunity to interact with experts in storytelling, production, distribution, and the business of show business.

How This Cohort is Different

In The Heroine’s Journey in XR, creative teams will explore female driven stories using the not often explored Heroine’s Journey as a primary tool, with assistance from the latest in technology, including AI.

With a generous grant from the Melinda Gates Pivotal Foundation and The Shubert Organization partners, THEatre ACCELERATOR: The Heroine’s Journey in XR offers creative teams on opportunity to explore how AR and VR can be used to help develop, iterate, rehearse and distribute their female supportive stories. Teams receive technology to assist in their experimentation and investigation along with access to some of the top professionals in the emerging field today.

The Journey

Phase I

Phase I brings together artists from around the world for two weeks in the form of a virtual lab aimed at identifying the product market fit for each project.

Underwritten by Apples and Oranges Arts, there is no cost to the participants and no percentage of ownership of the show. This phase of the program is free to artists.

This two week colloquium wraps with a pitch session where participants present their shows on Facebook Live to theatre and tech industry veterans. This helps guide the shows towards the next step in their trajectory.

Have questions? Check our FAQs page for more information.

Accelerate Concert

Held annually, the Accelerate Concert acts as a fundraiser and showcases songs and scenes from THEatre ACCELERATOR participants. Anyone who has completed Phase I can request that their work be featured in this concert.

Partners of Apples and Oranges Arts, donors, past THEatre ACCELERATOR mentors and alumni are invited to attend these events, followed by the general public. At our 2016 Accelerate concert, nearly 70% of the audience was general public meaning, the works from Phase I were able to reach an entirely new audience!

Phase II

Phase Two takes storytelling beyond the page and into the world. Through mutual collaboration, select shows merge into this phase of the program, where the focus shifts from the marketing to the creative development. We explore the right medium for the show, thinking beyond traditional models to offer several ways for artists to bring their stories to the world.

Apples and Oranges Arts develops a custom roadmap for your show. Built on the foundation discovered in Phase I, we refine and enhance the story while simultaneously defining and enhancing the brand and defining the path to monetization.

We “Take the Starving out of Artist” by providing financial resources to participants to foster the start-up culture and accelerate the creative process.

Demo Day

Much like the final stage of a traditional tech incubator, participants who complete Phase II present their work to industry producers, creatives, performers, as well as our THEatre ACCELERATOR patrons and potential investors.

Demo Day presents THEatre ACCELERATOR participants with yet another day to have their work seen by new audiences, this time with the promise of investors in the room.

THEatre ACCELERATOR

THEatre ACCELERATOR: The Heroine’s Journey in XR brings together artists from around the world for up to three weeks in the form of a virtual lab aimed at identifying ways to use cutting edge technology to enhance their musicals.

Underwritten by Apples and Oranges Arts, with generous support from the Melinda Gates Pivotal Foundation there is no cost to the participants and no percentage of ownership of the shows. This phase of the program is free to artists.

After working with experts and mentors, the colloquium wraps with a pitch session where participants present their projects to theater and tech industry veterans, helping to guide the shows towards the next step in their trajectory.

Have questions? Check our FAQs page for more information.

And Beyond!

Upon graduating THEatre ACCELERATOR, our teams become part of larger family with all our alumni community. Some shows may continue to move forward with our production company Apples and Oranges Studios, as one of our virtual productions, filmed stage musicals or live theatricals. Even if we do not produce the shows ourselves, we still help where we can as either an advisor or a connector.