When theater stops being polite

Two Live Arts shows embrace our guilty pleasures and alternate realities

For most of us, there is little art in Facebook stalking and Saturday afternoon “Project Runway” marathons. For two Live Arts directors, however, these alternate realities have a place on the stage.

“Reality shows are everywhere, in our experience and culture. Why not bring it into the theater and art?” reasons Melanie Stewart, director and choreographer of “Kill Me Now.” Premiering Friday, the show stars fictional reality dance show contestants competing for real votes from the audience.

“The show has a lot to do with what it means to win and what it means to lose in our culture,” says Stewart. “What does it mean to really win a reality show — what’s the prize?”

While “Fatebook” also premieres Friday, the show has been brewing for months on Facebook, where the 13 central performers have developed their characters and invited their future live audience to take part in the fabricated world.

“My company is interested in physical space, but also what happens to the body once it exists in cyberspace,” says director Whit MacLaughlin of his work with New Paradise Laboratories. “With Facebook, you have access to everyone in the world, but do you know where they’re going? Do you know who they are?”

The physical realization of “Fatebook” will depend, to some extent, on how both worlds meet. “It’s a little bit like your actions, if you can call them that, on Facebook,” says MacLaughlin of what to expect as an audience member. “You can stand back and be a voyeur, or you can interact, however you define that.”