Audience immersion is a storytelling technique which attempts to make the audience feel as though they are a part of the story or performance, a state which may be referred to as "transportation" into the narrative, permitting high levels of suspension of disbelief.[1] Audience immersion may be used to enhance learning or to create a more realistic experience.[2] Various methods may be employed to this end, including narrative perspective in writing or technical design in the performing arts.[3][4] An early example of audience immersion is from the 1846 travelogue Pictures from Italy by Charles Dickens, in which the narrator, speaking in the first person, addresses the reader using second-person pronouns, allowing the reader to "picture themselves with Dickens as he travels."[5]
In theatre, audio-visual technologies have been increasingly employed to increase immersion.[6] For example, the 2019 Cold War play Anna used binaural sound transmitted through headphones to make "each spectator culpable in the tale of spying, surveillance and secrets" in a voyeuristic manner.[6][7] Immersive theater is a style of theater that enforces audience immersion by physically placing the audience within the performance space, allowing interaction with performers, and breaking the fourth wall during the performance.[8] British theatre company Punchdrunk is well known for its immersive theatre productions, such as Sleep No More, an adaptation of Macbeth.[9]
Many audiovisual media formats including video games attempt to employ audience immersion.[1][2] In video gaming, audience immersion has been studied as a strategy for promoting behavior change for the implementation of public health objectives.[1]