Hi Ben, tell me a little bit about who you are and what you do

I’m 22 and I recently graduated from Goldsmiths in creative computing. Since then I’ve been taking on a freelance web design role with IntrAktion and I’m about to start a masters in digital theatre at Wimbledon University of Arts London.

Being profoundly deaf, which I am, has never been a barrier to enjoying music and performing arts, especially dance. In a way this has stimulated my approach to computing and programming, which is to be as creative and imaginative as possible, adopting new technologies and thinking outside the box.

Your recent project, Interactive Technology in Dance, saw you combine tech and dance to a fascinating degree – can you tell me more about the project and how it worked?

While at university I developed a project to expand and discover ways of using experimental software and hardware to generate interactive visualisations that are controlled by body movements. Dancers and choreographers were able to use this technology during the development and performance of a dance piece.

Interactive Technology in Dance was built using motion sensing gaming device, Microsoft Kinect, and open source C++ toolkit, OpenFrameworks. The software built by OpenFrameworks produced mathematically-generated images that could be controlled by body movements and gestures using the depth camera technology behind Kinect. The images in turn could be projected onto a screen for multiple uses in a studio or stage.

Working in collaboration with a dance student, I developed three different visualisations that were influenced by interactive pieces of art, including dance. Working with the dancers from Trinity Laban and getting feedback from them helped me refine and adapt the technology to their needs.

What do you think the potential is for this kind of technology in other artforms?

Unlimited. It’s an exciting time in which to be working. Looking around you can already see how this technology is being used in other artforms. Good examples include the Digital Revolution exhibition at Barbican and Random International’s Rain Room, which was a major inspiration behind one of my visualisations. It’s now being used by dance companies Motionhouse and Chunky Move.

I could see this kind of setup being used in theatre as part of a stage design, for example as interactive scenery, and in more immersive performances for audience participation.

This isn’t your first foray into combining digital, dance and tech – what can you tell me about the Fragmentation project?

Fragmentation was a collaborative project with a choreographer at Trinity Laban. The dance embraced the use of technology from rehearsals to the final performance. Rehearsals were recorded from several different camera angles and then manipulated using video editing software to randomly cut up the order and structure of the dance. The artist had to learn the new choreography that was produced by the edited footage.

The new dance was filmed and then used in the final performance by editing the footage in Final Cut Pro. We used multiple screens in different positions on stage, which were delicately measured in rehearsals to make sure all the video frames lined up on separate screens via one projector.

Do you think we might see more gaming technologies used within the arts?

A lot of immersive theatre gives audience members the feeling of being in a game, such as The Drowned Man by Punchdrunk and the numerous productions put on by Secret Cinema. The idea of making the audience a character in a play is similar to having an avatar controlled by someone playing a game.

The crossover is even more noticeable in games today. A great example is Gone Home. The focus of the game is on the narrative and exploration of the set rather than progression of levels and missions. There is a huge influx of games with unique artistic styles coming from indie and small developers.

New technologies like virtual headset Oculus Rift will give gamers a more immersive experience and we can expect this tech to be used in theatre and the arts. Senza Peso is a virtual reality mini-opera taking full use of 360-degree imagery and stunning visual effects. This idea is something that can pave the way towards complete immersive theatre experiences like The Drowned Man.

You work in web design – what are your top tips for any arts organisations thinking about a redesign of their existing site?

1. Renew and refresh. Keep your site updated; a lot of companies think that just having a site redesigned then left alone is enough. But it isn’t; the content and imagery should be updated frequently. Using a content management system will make it easier to manage yourself.

2. Make it work everywhere and on everything. Web designs that support different browsers and screen sizes are becoming increasingly popular due to the rise of mobile and tablets being used to navigate the web. Good responsive design will change the layout of your site without losing any content on a mobile or tablet screen.

3. Be happy! You’ll never get the perfect design.

What’s the next big technological development the arts world needs to know about?

The next big things will be virtual reality and wearables. There’s no doubt Facebook see the potential in Oculus Rift and Sony have followed this with Project Morpheus. Google Glass is the start of more hands-free, all-in-one systems built to help us with our daily lives. But it won’t be long before we start seeing these systems used beyond their potential and the arts world grabbing the opportunity to wow audiences.

With the internet of things, it won’t be long before we start interacting with installations or exhibitions without our knowledge, or before we even arrive.

This interview was co-commissioned with Arts Industry magazine

Ben Glover is a digital theatre masters student at Wimbledon University of Arts London – follow him on Twitter @cyport

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