About The Technology

Artistic Directors Mark Coniglio and Dawn Stoppiello have used interactivity in their performances because they want the media to have the same sense of dynamism, vitality and "liveness" as the performers themselves. The sensory systems they use allow the chaos of the human body to infiltrate the dead media and give it life. In addition, this linkage of body and technology highlights the uneasy relationship between the organic and the electronic in our time – a central theme of Coniglio and Stoppiello's work.

In 16 [R]evolutions we are exploring the transformation from the pre-human animal to the post-intellectual man. Throughout the work, we use the most beautiful and complex video imagary in the sections that point to our animal selves (the post-intellectual state is represented primarily by absurd theatrical sections.) Because this imagery is generated directly from the movement of the performers as "animal," we are suggesting the tension between the dormant seed of reason buried within the creature, and the (seemingly to us) harsh actions of a creature whose mandate is to survive at any cost.

Greatdance.com has video documenttion of Coniglio and Stoppiello's presentation about the technology in 16 [R]evolutions at the Harvestworks' "Whose In Control" Conference. Click here to see the clip in Windows Media Viewer.

Real-Time Motion Capture

In 16 [R]evolutions, we will be using video cameras and software to perform real-time motion capture of the dancer's movement, allowing them to interactively manipulate video, sound and light as they dance.

The motion capture used in 16 [R]evolutions is a low-tech version of the motion capture done for Hollywood movies (e.g., Gollum in Lord of the Rings.) Using a free software from Italy called EyesWeb, an imaginary "skeleton" (seen to the right in red) is imposed on the outline of the dancers body as seen by a video camera. The position and trajectory of these points is used throughout 16 [R]evolutions to give the performers sophisticated control of the media.

Interpretation of Movement

The movement trajectory or "path" of all points on the skeleton is then sent to software created by Artistic Co-Director Mark Coniglio called Isadora®, which handles the generation of imagery and manipulation of other media. The shape and speed of the path are analyzed to sense the "quality" of the dancers movement: lyrical, sharp, slow, fast, simple, complex, etc. The relative intensity of each of these categories can influence the timbre of the music , the color of the image, and other parameters, so the feeling of the media reflects the quality of the movement.

In addition, the movement of individual points on the skeleton can also determine how images are produced. Another section only tracks the position of the performer's head, allowing the shapes to seemingly eminate from their mouth. The size an quantity of shapes produced is controlled by the volume of the performers voice, as measured by a wireless microhphone.

To get a better sense of this, please take a look at the video documentation presentation we made at Harvestworks' "Whose In Control" conference in NYC. You can find the clip on greatdance.com