Special Assignment: Dr. Celine Latulipe

Title: Exploring the Design Space in Technology-Augmented Dance

Authors: Celine Latulipe, D. Wilson, S. Huskey, M. Word, A. Carroll, E. Carroll, B. Gonzalez, V. Singh.

Presentation: (Conference Paper) CHI 2010, April 10-15, 2010, Atlanta, Georgia, US

Summary: This article describes the developments in the newly created field of Dance and Technology. The authors describe the project Dance.Draw at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, which studies methods on combining dance with visualization images that are being transformed by the dancers at the same time they are performing.

This project studies how these interaction can enhance the audience interaction with the performance. The authors discuss three  presentations that have been done since 2008, and the different interactions utilized in each one. As well as the results the interaction they observed between the audience and the show. The project consists of having the dancers have tools, either on their hands or their costumes, that transform the visualizations that are being showed behind them. These tools range from wireless mice to movement sensors.

For example, the image shown above, is from the pilot presentation they did, back in 2008. In this case, the dancers were holding mice and as they moved, they transformed the figure shown in the back.

Discussion: I have never been a fan of dancing presentations, but it is still interesting to learn how computer science can interact with this field of arts. I am looking forward to having Dr. Latulipe in our classroom and learning more about her work in this project.