Walking through Walls: Artistic Strategies and Audience Engagement in Virtual and Mixed Reality Performance
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Abstract
This thesis reflects on my practice-as-research (PaR) study on the convergence of 360-degree video (360V) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies with performance practices. It charts the underpinning research and creative development of mixed reality (MR) and virtual performance work, particularly concerning the use of 360V and Volumetric Capture (VolCap) technologies. At the centre of this study is the creation of two artworks, Dis_Place (2019) and Facades (2021), which have been shared widely with the public, resulting in a rich body of audience data that I have analysed and placed in dialogue with a range of related critical concepts. Furthermore, I use the insights gained from both the audience feedback and my practice in the field to offer an array of practical strategies and tips for future performance makers wishing to engage with performance and VR.
The study highlights the possibilities and challenges for capturing and sharing performance work using VR, noting the tension that can exist between materials and content-led approaches (Coniglio, 2006). It reveals that despite 360V often being perceived as a lesser technology than computer-generated VR, it can affect audiences powerfully and can provide ripe opportunities for ‘conducting agency’ (Breel, 2022). In contrast, VolCap is more complex to use, in terms of building the virtual environment (VE), yet offers the potential of room-scale VR with a cinematic aesthetic, which can be useful for building intimacy. This study has found that the film qualities and photorealistic visualisations found in 360V and VolCap can also enhance the emotional intensity experienced by audiences and both technologies offer unique ways to represent real performers in VEs. Moreover, it proposes that cross-fertilisation of approaches from performance and technology can have potent effects, providing audiences with new embodied experiences.
In my analysis, the application of concepts of embodied spectatorship has exposed the somatic potential of these mediums when used with a specific set of dance approaches and artistic content. My findings lead towards new understandings of embodiment through disembodiment (Popat, 2016), towards a mode of audience engagement I term ‘ethereal embodiment’, unique to the VolCap approach used. The techniques used cultivate a corporeal liminality for participants, drawing an awareness to their invisible, yet present body. Overall, this thesis presents an innovative body of artefacts and audience data which contributes original knowledge to the field of performance and technology, related practices and industry.