3 Ways to Maintain Audience Attention with Visual Variety

Sad to say, but our screen-obsessed culture has conditioned contemporary audiences to expect a shift in frame about every 3 seconds. This presents live theatre with a challenge: How do we capture and maintain attention in the stories we tell onstage? A shift in frame every 3 seconds is neither advisable nor possible in live theatre; so what can we do?

For starters, as a blanket rule for your show, we recommend prioritizing visual variety in your blocking, staging, and choreography. Regardless of the story, dialogue, lyrics, or music – generally picture each scene and song without the audio. Is each scene visually interesting? Does each scene vary from its surrounding scenes?

Here are 3 strategies for achieving visual variety:

1. Height Variation.

2. Spatial Variation.

3. Musical Staging/Choreography Variation.

1. Height Variation 

• Stage Cubes

• Platforms

• Stairs

• Ladders

• Chairs

2. Spatial Variation

• Intimate blocking in a familiar space. 

  • Example 1: Characters on the couch in their living room.

• Public Location

  • Example 1: Airport Terminal.

  • Example 2: The familiar TV talk show set-up in “No Time for Patience.”

  • Example 3: Back of Church Sanctuary in “Ticket to Church.”

• Outside

  • Example: Yelling across the distance of a football field.

• Family Clusters

  • Example: The three mother/daughter duos in “Mama, I’m a Big Girl Now" from HAIRSPRAY.

• Isolation

  • Example: Spotlight on soloist.

• Oppositional

  • Example 1: “Lily’s Eyes” from THE SECRET GARDEN.

  • Example 2: “We Stick Together” from RALPH TO THE RESCUE.

3. Musical Staging/Choreography Floor Shape Variation

• Triangles 

  • Example(s): “Look at What it Brings” and “Say What I Mean” from NERVOUS: The Musical.

• Diagonals

• Clumps

• Clusters 

  • Example: Create a firetruck (without the firetruck) in “Decisions, Decisions.” Achieved with firefighter hats and a cluster of actors. 

• Call and Response

• Circles and Feedthrough lines

  • Example: Watch “Castles” video (Timestamp: 2:50 – 3:05) to see circles and feedthrough lines in action – achieving clean transition from full ensemble into trio.

• Traveling 

• Levels

Need Some More Specific Help?

Full Staging/Movement/Choreography idea videos are provided with the purchase of select Faith Based Student Musicals titles. 

Samples: 

• COMPARING CHRISTMAS Staging and Movement Sample. 

• Presentation Day: WORD POWER Staging and Movement Sample.

We hope these tools for visual variety help you to gain and maintain the attention of your audience. In the coming months we will address more in this area:

1. How to create a visual map of your story with your use of blocking, staging and choreography.

2. How to create memorable, visual "moments." (Use of snapshots and vignettes.)

3. Honing in on the auditory elements of your musical theatre offering.

We pray that these resources help your students to internalize biblical truth and point your communities to the person of Jesus Christ. This is our mission.

*Blog Edits by James Dawson Fobes.