Google Offers 360-Degree Views From Inside the World’s Greatest Concert Halls

Thanks to Google, the best seat in the house is now right in front of your laptop screen. Their newly-launched Performing Arts project brings users onto the stages of Carnegie Hall, the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and the Theatro Municipal of São Paulo for an intimate view of real performances that few audience members get to experience.

Each show was filmed using multiple 360-degree camera rigs placed around the stage. Users can click and drag their mouse to adjust their view, or switch to a different camera for a change in perspective. The concert halls showcase different styles of performance art: choosing the Carnegie Hall recording allows you to enjoy a performance of “In the Hall of the Mountain King” from behind the orchestra, and the Royal Shakespeare Company’s option brings you onstage at a dress rehearsal of Henry V.

The new project is part of the Google Cultural Institute—a digital collection of exhibits from museums and archives around the world. Once you’ve sat through all the performances, you can then “visit” various rooms inside different venues, Google Street View-style. So if you ever dreamed of exploring the wig workshop at Brussels’ opera house in you pajamas, now’s your opportunity. 

[h/t: Engadget]