Three types of hybrid experience

I wrote this post whilst travelling to the DEN Conference in Eindhoven. It was mostly a way for me to untangle my thoughts on this, and I suspect this is not a definitive guide.

But I think it's useful to have shared ways of talking about this stuff so we can try and be a bit clearer and more certain that we're all talking about the same thing.

Maybe this typology already exists (it probably does), but I couldn’t easily find one that made sense of the stuff I’ve been seeing and working on, so I wrote this instead.

At the conference I joined a panel speaking about the lessons learned during the Venues of the Future r&d project which explored the creation of hybrid cultural experiences. One of the outputs of the project was this toolkit, which might be a useful guide if you're thinking about or starting a hybrid project.

What is a hybrid experience?

My own (simple) definition is that a hybrid experience is an experience that combines both digital and physical elements.

But that broad definition encompasses loads and loads of different types of experience, so I think so more specific definitions are useful.

What about fully digital experiences?

Something like Party in a Shared Google Doc (a playful, communal event hosted entirely in a shared Google Sheet) isn’t hybrid by this definition, because there’s no physical layer involved. It’s 100% digital, that doesn’t make it less interesting or impactful, it’s just doing something different.

This post focuses specifically on experiences that combine digital and physical elements in some way. But there’s a whole other conversation to be had about digital-native formats that push the boundaries of what “online” can mean.

All of this stuff exists on a spectrum, with fully digital at one end, and fully physical on the other. The hybrid stuff is what sits in the middle.

The three types of hybrid experience

I think there are three main modes, or types, of hybrid experience (I am not wedded to these labels but I think they're helpfully descriptive for now): Simultaneous, Layered, and Embedded.

Simultaneous hybrid e.g. livestreaming or participatory broadcasts. Simultaneous hybrid experiences are when the digital and physical layers happen at the same time, often offering parallel or intersecting versions of the same event. This might be things like real-time performances. The digital layer may be participatory, reactive, or simply observational but its power and value lies in the shared sense of liveness and co-presence, even when audiences are distributed (this is something I spoke about with Dr Kirsty Sedgman in 2020).

• These experiences are good if you want to:
  • Enable live participation from people who can’t be there in person
  • Extend the reach and lifespan of time-limited events
  • Create a shared experience across physical and digital spaces

Layered hybrid e.g. digital and physical elements experienced in different ways or at different times. The digital and physical elements each function as standalone, self-contained experiences, but when taken together, they can reveal a deeper, richer whole. That standalone viability is important, it distinguishes layered hybrid from, say, supplemental content or documentation. They might not happen simultaneously, and they don’t have to rely on embedded tech in the physical experience. Instead, they can create a kind of dialogue between formats which can extend or reframe a work.

• The layered approach is good because they:
  • Allow for flexible timing and access across formats
  • Let you tell different parts of a story in different ways
  • Build connections between in-person and online audiences without requiring them to be present at the same time

Embedded hybrid e.g. technology integrated into the physical work, like AR or app-supported interpretation. Embedded hybrid experiences are where digital elements are inserted directly into the physical environment or activity, becoming part of the work’s design, structure, or logic. This might involve augmented reality, location-triggered elements, app-based storytelling, or responsive installations.

• This approach is useful because it:
  • Creates highly immersive, site-specific experiences
  • Encourages deeper engagement with a physical space or object, which can really enrich the physical experience.
  • Supports self-directed exploration - audiences can engage in their own time, at their own pace
• The key distinction (in my view) with this type of experience is that you cannot fully experience the work without engaging both layers.

Examples of simultaneous hybrid

RSC’s Dream (2021):
 Live motion-capture performance broadcast online with interactive audience controls via the website element of the experience.
 The digital and physical aspects were simultaneous, and audiences could 'affect' the show in real time.

Opera North’s From Couch to Chorus (2020-2021):
 Live-streamed choir rehearsals and performances with remote participants and in-person musicians.
 Engagement happened in real-time, though in different locations.

Royal Court’s My White Best Friend (and Other Letters Left Unsaid) (2020): A week-long live online performance festival where actors read powerful letters in real time to a remote audience, alongside pre-recorded DJ sets and provocation pieces.

Examples of layered hybrid

Good Chance Theatre's The Walk (2021-22): Audiences followed the journey of Little Amal, a giant puppet representing a young refugee, across Europe through online storytelling, videos, and live updates. The physical journey and events were experienced locally and a digital narrative layer offered a standalone story accessible globally online.

Queering the Map (2017-ongoing): An initially digital-only, user-generated map of queer experiences pinned to specific locations worldwide. The digital storytelling layer stands alone - it was later adapted into physical exhibitions, creating a connection and conversation between the online and offline forms.

Forensic Architecture’s Triple-Chaser (2019): A web-based investigation and open-source platform enabling anyone to help identify tear gas canisters used by U.S. firm Safariland. Then the physical layer involved an exhibition at the Whitney Biennial as a film and interactive installation with training data and visuals. The web platform worked on its own as a participatory research tool and the gallery presentation added visibility and critical framing.

Examples of embedded hybrid

Serpentine’s The Deep Listener (2019): 
An AR soundwalk that layered audio art over Kensington Gardens via a mobile app.
 Visitors explored a real, physical place, but their experience was shaped by digital storytelling.

Montreal’s Cité Mémoire installation (2017-ongoing):
 Outdoor historic projections triggered by an app when walking through Old Montreal.
 A hybrid experience only fully revealed through digital interaction via an app which include AR/VR experiences, narration and other site-specific content.

Opera North's Earth & Sky soundwalk (2025): A GPS-triggered soundwalk around Penistone Hill Country Park near Haworth, combining commissioned music, poetry, and field recordings via a mobile app.
 The digital content is connected to the physical landscape, each step triggers new sound elements, creating an immersive, site-specific experience.

Blurring the boundaries

Of course, not every experience fits neatly into one of these modes. Some sit across boundaries, evolve over time, or blur the lines between being digital-native things and hybrid.

But that’s exactly why having a simple framework like this helps because it gives us a way to start the conversation, ask better questions, and be clearer about what we’re actually trying to do.

Isn't this all just what we used to call 'digital'?

I guess the danger of introducing another vague term into the mix is just a pile-up of meaninglessness.

But I’d argue hybrid is a more specific lens than just 'digital. It’s not about 'putting things online', it's concerned with the creation of experiences (which is such a central focus of cultural organisations)

And having worked on a few hybrid projects, and talked to a lot of people trying to make sense of them, I do think having some shared language helps give us a way to be clearer about what we’re talking about trying to achieve.

Anyway, I'm curious to hear your thoughts - are there types of experience that sit outside these three modes, are there better ways of talking about this type of experience?