How Broadway is embracing large-scale, high-resolution videos as an integrated narrative tool aided by generative AI, as some creatives worry about its overuse
Michael Paulson / New York Times :
Context & Ripple Effects
Broadway’s use of high-resolution video as part of storytelling brings generative AI into a live-performance workflow rather than treating it solely as a screen-production technology. It follows coverage that cast AI in Hollywood as a creative aid rather than a wholesale replacement for artists, including Hollywood’s tool-not-replacement debate.
The move also extends a video-tool market already aimed at Hollywood and advertising through efforts such as Runway’s Getty-backed video model partnership. The concern over overuse matters because projection can become a defining production choice, not merely a backstage efficiency tool.
First-order effects
- Broadway creative teams can incorporate larger, higher-resolution video into narrative staging, with generative AI aiding the creation or development of those visuals.
- Directors and designers face an immediate artistic constraint: using the new visual capacity without letting screens overwhelm live performance, a concern already voiced by some creatives.
Second-order effects
- Production teams and video-tool providers gain a new live-theater use case, while shows may increasingly compete on how effectively they integrate digital imagery with performers.
- The creative debate raises pressure for clearer production norms around where AI-assisted visuals add narrative value versus where they become visual excess.
Third-order effects
- If adoption persists, generative AI is likely to become workflow-native across more entertainment formats, with value determined by integration into existing creative roles rather than standalone AI output.
- The same questions about creative control and acceptable AI use that surfaced in Hollywood labor negotiations over AI-produced material could become more relevant to live-performance production as the tools spread.
The trend: Generative video is moving from a specialized screen-production capability into an embedded creative workflow across entertainment formats, where artistic governance becomes as important as output quality.