"Theatre has existed since the dawn of man, as a result of the human tendency for storytelling. Since its inception, theater has come to take on many forms, utilizing speech, gesture, music, dance, and spectacle, combining the other performing arts, often as well as the visual arts, into a single artistic form. The word Theater derives from the Ancient Greek theatron (θέατρον) meaning "the seeing place".1

YouTube is today's "seeing place", a Global Theater powered by individuals and local communities around the world. Driven by human passion and the desire to share, stories to tell, eager to be heard. Maybe even best described by the definition of ‘Community Theater', "its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community. It may refer to theatre that is made entirely by a community with no outside help, or a collaboration between community members and professional theatre artists, or a performance made entirely by professionals that is addressed to a particular community".2

But YouTube even goes beyond this as it empowers its audiences to participate within its own Theater. It enforces the basic human tendency to share, to interact and to create. YouTube refers to its ‘users' as ‘Broadcasters of Tomorrow' but in fact, although the term ‘broadcasting' does apply when referencing the millions of viewers being reached each day, it allows for two-way communication and instant interaction between creator and viewer. And because of this interaction, feedback is instant and progress is imminent.

The notion ‘by the people - for the people' doesn't materialize anywhere better than on YouTube, the ultimate community theater. Which, by definition makes it a far more advanced platform for entertainment and education than traditional media such as (linear) TV. Although YouTube may not replace Television (yet), it certainly is a force to reckon with, especially since it's ‘programming' isn't programmed! It is being created and recreated by its own audience. The audience determines what is ‘hot' and what is not. Here Participation is key.

"On the Internet, we see it in blogs, on social networks, in videos, and through many voices".3 We express ourselves, listen to others, and we participate. If one is not, one will be - soon. Furthermore, companies, institutions and advertisers are as much part of any community as any individual and it is time for those non- participating organizations to embrace the opportunity to perform and interact ‘on stage' alongside others who are already taking part and are in fact in essence the same individuals they are trying to impress, embrace and convince through (linear) TV, Billboards and Print.

We live in the era of ‘Real'. People want to be treated with respect. They want to consume honest products and services. They demand transparency and absolute integrity. They expect to be listened to, they expect to be heard. What better way to interact with your community than to really participate within it?!

Like real life and real theater, YouTube is also about drama and comedy and satire and farce and romance and tragedy and fantasy! It's what's so great about it. It allows participants to take on different roles, to experiment, to express and to become. It allows for people and organizations (participants) to interact on common ground and as equals! This could reinforce and/or strengthen the relationship (between participants). Imagine what potential power it has when people, whether ‘on stage' or ‘off stage' feel that close to a brand, understand its character, are able to challenge its sincerity and even better - are allowed to challenge its sincerity! Imagine, that by participating you get to know each other better and a (stronger) bond materializes to a point that he or she will even defend ‘you' (when you are not paying attention)...

YouTube is a ‘live' stage. It is live theatre where artists become audiences and audiences become artists. It is about building relationships through interaction, about being present. It is all about participation!

The Branding of a Global Theatre

Lets first drop the word ‘global'. Yes I believe YouTube is a Global Theatre, but it is also a local Community Theatre, driven by the community for the community. Each community is different, like each city and each country is different. So the challenge, when it comes to branding, is to find the common denominator, that binds us not that what divides us. So even though diversity is a key strength of YouTube and should play an evident role when it comes to branding, we need to find some common ground.

I think both a strength and a weakness of the current model is the sheer amount of contributions (videos) being uploaded each day. People need a little help, a little order, some control and some guidance (that goes beyond the current system of ratings and views). Advertisers need that even more! So, lets learn something from the past. As old as ancient Greek and Roman Theatre itself, the Messenger or Announcer played a significant role in presenting news to local communities. Why not embrace the thought that the Announcers of the past are the Ambassadors of today? Embraced by television already a long time ago and proven an effective way to get the message across, this also presents the opportunity for ‘branding through association'. By working together with familiar and likable ambassadors, YouTube associates itself with their personality and character. A simple, yet very effective branding mechanism and at the same time an excellent way to guide the audience through the maze of content.

Obviously you can work with one or many ‘announcers', you can work with established ones or scout for new talent, the objective stays the same; to present the YouTube audience with a guide, some personality and a little more guidance. For example: a weekly show highlighting what's new, what's popular and what is happening (based on all contributions uploaded that week). Or like Starbucks (who had tremendous success with its ‘think global, act local' approach) embrace what local communities are doing around the country and facilitate their expression through YouTube, by pro-actively supporting their efforts to be heard and seen, by showcasing their activities (whether it be local events, cultural festivals or sports). It shows that you care. It shows that you are also a participant, even though more of a facilitator than a contributor.

I think YouTube could offer a little more guidance (fictive image)

YouTube predominately hosts videos online which are created offline, so YouTube shouldn't be afraid to also cross into the offline domain by getting it self involved in local community activities. One of the most effective approaches to building a strong brand is to become part of everyday life in a more active role. As we should encourage people and advertisers to participate on YouTube, YouTube itself should in turn participate offline. At regional (sporting) events, local festivals and cultural happenings YouTube could facilitate technology aimed at bringing people together. YouTube could (selectively) sponsor community events or register them for online broadcasting. YouTube could encourage more local communities to open their own dedicated channels and assist (local) governments in getting public messages across. Participation works both ways, especially in community theatre.

A Closing Thought

In light of recent developments, such as Google's introduction of ‘video ad auctions' to YouTube and its long-term contracts with major players such as Channel 4 and previously already HBO, for inclusion of long-form programming, based on an ad revenue share model, makes me wonder about how this model could further disrupt today's media landscape. An interesting development because we are used to the fact that content producers sell content to broadcasters (tv channels, program aggregators) who in turn pay distributers (cable, satellite) for access to their audiences. YouTube offers both program aggregation and access and could therefore effectively cut out two thirds of the food chain. I'm not suggesting YouTube should, and obviously we need cable for internet too, but if professional and high quality (full-length) content becomes more and more available and is structured and presented in a user friendly way, we might as well be currently witnessing the beginning of a new media paradigm...

Paper by Tim Verbeek, Founder LA2DAY.COM

1. http://www.omnipelagos.com/entry?n=theatre
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_theatre
3. http://investor.google.com/2006_founders_letter.html