RICHMOND, Va. – A unique performance is taking place inside VCU’s Grace Street Theater. Two dancers perform on stage, surrounded by a camerawoman, production assistants, technical directors, laptops and a producer. The rest of the theater is empty.
Where is the audience? Watching online from the comfort of their homes.
The coronavirus pandemic made live performances a challenge for Dance majors, confining them to their homes, connected only by their computers. VCUarts Kinetic Imaging Professor Dr. Kate Sicchio decided to meet these challenges head-on by designing a performance for the internet.
“The internet’s about actual communication that goes back and forth in real time,” Sicchio said. “I really wanted the piece to be about that.”
The performance, titled Feeling Distant, was broadcast over the internet using a simple streaming setup consisting of a camera and a laptop. While the audience watched from home, they could click buttons on the performance’s website to remotely inflate and deflate part of the costumes the dancers were wearing as they performed.
The costumes contain microcomputers that connect to Wi-Fi to receive commands written in Terpsicode, a computer language Sicchio created. A small laptop computer fan allows the costumes to inflate and deflate.
Sicchio said the interactivity of the costumes was inspired by being unable to physically dance with other dancers due to COVID-19 restrictions.
“There’s like this lack of proximity and closeness and touching that I really miss,” Sicchio said, “so that’s where the wearable came in … making it inflatable and deflatable with air like breath.”
Marissa Schroeder, a VCUarts student, said the ability to interact with the audience from a distance made her want to perform in Feeling Distant. She improvised her choreography as commands from the audience inflated and deflated part of her costume.
“It’s almost connection even though we all have to be so distant from each other,” Schroeder said.
Schroeder said performing in an empty theater was an odd experience.
“Not seeing people there kind of almost feels like a rehearsal,” Schroeder said, “but I still can like remind myself that like the reason that there’s movement is because other people are interacting.”
VCUarts Dance Department Chair Courtney Harris describes Feeling Distance as a form of screen dance. Screen dance is a method of choreographing movement for the perspective of a camera instead of an audience. Harris said Sicchio is helping students bring together the two fields of dance and cinematography.
“She’s been a huge support to our Dance majors,” Harris said. “Her screen dance class has been very instrumental in helping our students.”
The performance is yet another way dance itself contributes to society, according to Harris.
“I think that’s an example of something quite beautiful that’s come out of this really difficult time,” Harris said.
