As I see it the Faraday Theatre design is more about  real phenomena on the bench than about the presenter.

 

Clearly, the ‘setting’ is formal, but the layout enhances informal presentation more readily than any other layout I’ve experienced. The audience is uncannily close to the presenter and the tightly curved seating pattern allows members of the audience to see each other’s faces. This gives a hugely different dynamic compared with the usual setup where each person can only see the backs of heads. Emotions and responses are shared. I’ve seen competing groups of schoolchildren loudly chanting alternative answers to a multiple-choice Powerpoint quiz projected onto the central screen, then cheering seconds later when the correct answer appears. All completely unsupervised, while waiting for the rest of the audience to arrive before a show begins. Quite amazing! I’ve never seen this happen anywhere else.

 

I presented the last Friday Evening Discourse before the theatre closed for renovation and succeeding in getting 400 formally dressed RI members to shout a cheery countdown before my final, fiery custard-powder explosion right in front of the demonstration bench. I’m sure this would have been a much greater challenge given any other seating arrangement.

 

Vehicle access is a huge problem, but there’s space at the front to unload before driving away to park. No major change there: Albermarle Street became the world’s first one-way street because of carriage traffic attracted by shows in this room.

 

Sadly, adult science communication in the 21^st century generally requires little more than Powerpoint and a big screen. The Faraday Theatre is something special.