The European research project Replay is an interactive dance experience focusing on the aspect of replay-ability, for players and for audience.
A role-playing interactive dance experience in which both domains, Pre-Choreographic elements and game design methodology are used to design the framework in which AI operates to create unique guidelines for performers. Each performer has a role and receives coaching via their headphones connected to their smarthphones to embody, interact and create relations with themselves and others. focusing on the aspect of replay-ability for both the participants/dancers and audience creating an unique experience for each performance
Choreographer Dereck Cayla works together with digital artists and game developers Xavier Boissarie and Tomek Jarolin from ORBE collective. Together, under the umbrella of REPLAY, they are developing an interactive dance game called Rôles de Danse that will be premiered in season 2024-2025.
In the dance game Rôles de Danse, the players and audience are led by an artificial intelligence into the physical embodiment of a role. All together audience and players have to guess which roles they are embodying or watching.
— Abstract
Rôles de danse is a playful connected dance experience where each participant embodies one of about fifteen roles. The player is coached by an AI, which helps them inhabit their role and achieve their goal, either in alignment with or in opposition to the objectives of other players/dancers.
An event features a series of gameplay sessions attended by an audience. Participants alternate between being spectators and players. While the players are immersed in the collective performance, spectators attempt to guess which player is embodying which role as part of a series of challenges.
Each gameplay session begins with a brief 5-minute warm-up, after which each participant receives a goal tied to their role. During the 10-minute gameplay phase, dance interactions generate various choreographic situations, while spectators try to deduce which roles the players are embodying. At the end of the session, each player’s identity is revealed to all participants.
— Choreographic Corpus
In Rôles de danse, each participant embodies one of approximately fifteen roles drawn from the pre-choreographic repertoire of the ICK company, directed by Pieter C. Scholten and Emio Greco. This repertoire meticulously documents the intentionality of movement and embodiment along several axes. Each role immerses the player in a specific physical and cognitive state, preparing them to pursue their goal within the choreographic game.
— Accessibility
The experience is crafted to embrace a rich diversity of participants, offering the promise of unique encounters in every session. Each player is accompanied by a guiding voice, speaking their native language, throughout the journey. Gradually, a dialogue unfolds—a dynamic interplay between the voice and the participant’s body. This fluid exchange is orchestrated by the AI, which refines its guidance in real time, thoughtfully adapting to the player’s physical and sensory abilities, experience level and behavior. This ensures that instructions remain both meaningful and resonant.
— Performance Context
During a performance, multiple dance sessions take place (at least two). Each session lasts 15 minutes, including the warm-up phase. Performances can occur in various locations: galleries, stages, public spaces, etc.
Each player is equipped with a mobile device and headphones, enabling them to receive AI-generated instructions and transmit information about their behavior or interactions with others. A sound system broadcasts music orchestrated by one of the roles, the DJ, while a lighting installation is directed by another role, the Magician.
