London is one of the longest-settled major cities in the world, so there’s naturally a lot of history and tradition there. Even now, ancient ruins are regularly being unearthed during everyday maintenance. The city’s thriving entertainment sector couldn’t afford to stick to tradition as times changed, and here are just a few ways London entertainment staples have upgraded their offerings.
Casinos
More than a few of London’s casinos have become famous in their own right, such as the Park Lane Club in the heart of the opulent Mayfair area. In recent years, though, online alternatives have appeared which have forced some changes. After all, online casino games have the advantage of accessibility and convenience, and when customers can go and play the Aviator casino game at Paddy’s from the comfort of home, traditional casinos need to offer some other benefit.
This is why many of the top casinos in the city have leaned more heavily into the entertainment aspect. The biggest venues are full-blown complexes featuring multiple restaurants, theatres and other attractions. After all, the main selling point of a brick-and-mortar casino is the atmosphere and the experience, both of which are harder to replicate online.
Theatre
Speaking of live entertainment competing with their digital equivalents, theatres have long had a struggle against things like TV and movies to retain an audience. Theatre as a form has thousands of years of established tradition and a higher level of sophistication, but movies have special effects, dramatic editing, and massive star appeal. The age of being the only horse in the race is long gone.
The solution once again comes down to enhancing the live experience, often via the use of new technology. Some theatres have experimented with remote performances or VR-integrated productions, although in many cases the technology is more discreet. As theatre tech experts Illuminated Integration describe, theatres have been experimenting with things like control software for props and backdrops, which have the benefit of greatly speeding up transitions to avoid losing audience attention.
Museums
The city of London is home to some of the most prestigious and storied museums in the world, even if we look beyond things like the British Museum or the Natural History Museum. These have the reputation for having old relics and dusty manuscripts, but in reality, they’ve been keeping pace with the changing times more than most other institutions in the country.
To take the British Museum as a great example, exhibitions and events are almost fully digitally integrated, with companion apps available for exploring and a general focus on mobile technology. It has given some access to the thousands of artifacts not on display, and remote viewings have managed to bring the museum to populations all across the country. Other museums in the capital have followed the trend, and you can now virtually visit exhibitions from anywhere in the world.
If nothing else, London is a city that evolves, even if sometimes that evolution is just building on top of the old! Expect our entertainment to grow as the city does for the future!
