Royal Shakespeare Company produces its works with Blackmagic Design

To the delight of theater fans around the world, the company based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's hometown, has begun producing its plays with Ursa Mini Pro cameras and ATEM switchers.

Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) has launched a studio for the multi-camera production of his works with units Ursa Mini Pro 4.6K G2 and mixers ATEM Television Studio Pro HD of Blackmagic Design to the delight of theater fans who will be able to follow them around the world via streaming.

Located in Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's hometown, the theater company before the pandemic performed around 20 productions per year, both in that city and in London, the rest of the United Kingdom and other countries.

Mark Kendrick, a member of the company, comments that "we closed the doors to the public in March of last year and so far we have not reopened. Since this situation will remain unchanged for the rest of the winter, we are seeking to implement a digital approach in order to transmit a series of works that we perform on stage."

The festival was inaugurated commemorating The Boy in The Dress, an adaptation of the novel by David Walliams, and includes works for the public and educational organizations, including versions of Shakespeare's works written by acclaimed author Michael Morpurgo.

"One of the main challenges was how to ensure that these productions transmitted the same euphoria and sensation as in the theater. We had to implement a work dynamic that combined our theatrical knowledge and practices with notions of broadcasting," explains Kendrick.

“We are proud of the level of our productions, so anything we did had to meet the high standards to which our audience is accustomed,” he adds.

Theater on television

On the other hand, he points out that "we decided to film each play from the audience's perspective, which meant moving to the audience. Each production was slightly different, so we adapted the position of the cameras as necessary. However, we generally had two Ursa Mini Pro operated by cameramen in the central section of the box, and a third to capture an angular shot from the side of the stage. In addition, we used a Micro Studio Camera 4K unit, for the purpose of filming shots of himself and the audience.”

The actors had to look at the camera instead of at the audience. "This was challenging in some ways. We also had to keep a safe distance from each other and protect the cast and crew. It was also necessary to take a different approach to stage lighting to achieve the same quality on screen," says Kendrick.

All cameras are connected via SDI cables. For their part, the signals are transmitted to a matrix Smart Videohub 12G 40×40 and combined using a mixer ATEM Television Studio Pro HD.

Kendrick says, "The image quality achieved with the Ursa cameras is exceptional, and we were impressed by their robust design and reliability. We typically ran them for 12 hours a day, and they never gave us any problems. The workflow and integration with control programs and HyperDeck Studio Pro recorders allowed us to create macros to accompany every line and movement of the actors."

"We've learned a lot about how to film live theater, and this has led to a number of ideas and conversations about what we can do when the pandemic is over. Although we will focus on live performances, this could be a new way to reach a greater number of people in the future, concludes Kendrick.