Recently, I ventured into new territory for Extended Play when I connected with guests in a Google Hangout. While we typically transcribe and publish interviews, Hangouts gives us an opportunity to live broadcast the discussion and engage with viewers in real time as they ask questions of the guests.
Our first foray into this form virtually took me across the pond to the United Kingdom to speak with the team behind “Backstage in Biscuit Land,” Jessica Thom, Jess Mabel Jones, and Matthew Poutney, ahead of their first North American tour. It’s a wonderful video chat with Jessica Thom about Tourette’s syndrome, with which she lives, her character Tourettes Hero, and the play she created with Jess Mabel Jones.
As is the case with many technological experiments, this one succeeded to varying degrees. There are delays in the feed, and, at one point, the “Biscuit Land” gang dropped off completely, only to return moments later. Still, it’s full of fun, silliness, and, of course, lots of biscuits. Just watch. You’ll get it.
“Backstage in Biscuit Land” continues its tour over the next week in San Francisco at the Southside Theater June 2–5 and Los Angeles at the Skirball Cultural Center June 8 and 9.
