What might Charles Dickens’ classic A Christmas Carol look like, in virtual reality?

Performer, director and mixed-reality artist Kevin Laibson has an innovative answer.

As Experience Director for New York immersive design studio Agile Lens, Kevin is the producer of A Christmas Carol VR, now in its fifth year and offering free live performances on Meta Quest!

The goal of Agile Lens, as stated on their website, is to “redefine storytelling through immersive technology… to create transformative spatial experiences.”

They accomplish this goal with their nontraditional interpretation of Carol.

With some reimagined characters, A Christmas Carol VR maintains the magic of the timeless story. A talented two-actor team brings the show to life, in under an hour, amid some “magical” VR elements.

And incidentally, earlier this year, the show received a nomination for Best Immersive Theatre, during a special run at the Raindance Immersive Festival!

How to attend

Performances begin with a matinee on Saturday, November 29th, and run through weekends up to Sunday, December 21st. Here’s the link for information.

There will also be an all-day “stream-a-thon” on Agile Lens’ YouTube channel, on December 24th!

In addition, Kevin will be performing his solo show, “The Harmnf”, in New York and Los Angeles! Here’s the link for tickets.

Kevin talked about his background, offered a preview of what A Christmas Carol VR Audiences will see, and shared some guidance for fellow educators and theatre professionals who might like to take their work into virtual reality.

On this edition of Over Coffee®we cover:

• How Kevin first discovered his artistic medium: collaboration;

• How he first became aware of XR as a vehicle for storytelling;

• What he learned about storytelling with XR, that he still uses today;

• The story of A Christmas Carol VR;

• How Agile Lens maintains the magic of the beloved story while adapting it to virtual reality;

• What the audience will experience, when they attend a performance of A Christmas Carol VR;

• A new innovation which Agile Lens is testing, this year;

• What to keep in mind, about troubleshooting the unpredictable elements of a live VR performance;

• Performance dates, and how to get tickets!;

• What’s happening behind the scenes, during live performances of A Christmas Carol VR;

• How to support Agile Lens as they continue innovating in virtual reality;

• Kevin’s upcoming solo show, and the story behind it;

• His advice to a fellow educator who might like to take their theatre classes into VR;

• How he’d most like to change or develop A Christmas Carol VR in the next five years.