This small grant for exploratory research will support investigation of the use of media-rich instrumented environments in the performing and media arts. Using as the driver application a specific large-scale performance work, based on Homer's The Iliad, this project will begin development of a distributed control system. An important aspect of this system will be the ability of the audience to interact with the performance environment. Participants start their experience through a survey on a website, which populates a database used throughout the performance process. In the venue itself, which consists of a gallery as well as performance spaces, participants will be linked to their database records using standard radio frequency identification tags in their tickets, which are read by ubiquitous antennas. Media and story choices in the space will be adapted, based on the particular audience members attending on the particular day. As the experience progresses, the database will be updated with sensor data and images collected from the performance. The responsive environment is created by the interconnection of the database, sensors, and automated production equipment for the control of lighting, sound, motorized scenery, and video or image projection.
In the information society of the twenty-first century, technologies to manage, enable, and advance cultural innovation will be among the most valuable assets of civilization. This project will explore an emerging area that could be of great commercial, social, and scientific importance in the coming decades.
