Dances with Robots

The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) presents Dances with Robots: a podcast catalyzed by the corporeal risks and expressive opportunities of contemporary technologies. Join our host, choreographer and Dean at Brown University, Sydney Skybetter, alongside a series of guest hosts, as we explore the ways that artists, activists and technologists navigate the world through interdisciplinary practice.

A Conversation with Sarah Bay-Cheng 02/15/2024

This One's for the Dancers 02/13/2024

Code Switch: A Conversation with Raja Feather Kelly 12/15/2023

Code Switch: A Conversation with Raja Feather Kelly Sydney Skybetter sits down with artist Raja Feather Kelly to talk about his work in live performance. The two consider airport security and the end of the world, and Raja shares how his personal experiences and creative work shape one another. About Raja: Choreographer/Director Raja Feather Kelly is the artistic director of dance-theatre-media company the feath3r theory (founded in 2009). In 2018 the feath3r theory merged with New Brooklyn Theatre. Raja has been awarded a Creative Capital Award (2019), a National Dance Project Production Grant (2019), a Breakout Award from the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation (2018), Dance Magazine's inaugural Harkness Promise Award (2018), the Solange MacArthur Award for New Choreography (2016), and is a three-time Princess Grace Award winner (2017, 2018, 2019). He was born in Fort Hood, Texas and holds a B.A. in Dance and English from Connecticut College. Read the transcript, and find more resources in our archive: Like, subscribe, and review here: The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik About CRCI The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project. The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District. /episode/index/show/906492f2-fad2-4f7c-bd73-df7c5a19938b/id/29078313

Turning The Tables 12/12/2023

Overclocking of The Human Computer 12/07/2023

Overclocking of The Human Computer Sydney Skybetter sits down with performance historian Doug Eacho to discuss emergent technologies of the last century. They explore how sci-fi has influenced our expectations for the future of performance, and why these expectations almost never become reality. About Doug: Douglas Eacho is a performance historian and theater director. His current research project concerns artists and engineers who have sought to automate theatrical processes, from French surrealists, to lighting board designers, to contemporary makers of algorithmic dance. He explores the increasing integration between automaticity and theatricality on and off the stage, and the shifting ways technology performs amidst conditions of economic stagnation. Another research thread concerns the long history of statistical representation as it has intersected with naturalist and aleatory performance; this work informed his article “Serial Nostalgia: Rimini Protokoll’s 100% City and the Numbers We No Longer Are” (Theatre Research International, 2018). His reviews have been published in Theatre Survey, Theatre Journal, and Theatre and Performance Design. Before his doctoral studies, his found-text performances were presented around New York City, including at the Invisible Dog, Judson Memorial Church, and the Center for Performance Research. “His Fear of a Lonely Planet,” a piece about tourism, was devised with Stanford University students in 2018. Read the transcript, and find more resources in our archive: Like, subscribe, and review here: What We Discuss with Doug (Timestamps): 0:00:04: Intro to Doug Eacho and his expertise in performance history & technology 0:00:29: Discussion on the portrayal of AI in the media 0:01:52: Exploring the intersection of performance & technology throughout history 0:04:17: Defining performance and technology in relation to art 0:07:38: Analyzing the connection between acting and the portrayal of robots 0:09:15: Discussion on the sexist trope in Blade Runner 0:11:05: Mention of a deleted Salome dance scene in Blade Runner 0:13:08: Interpretation of science fiction as art about the present 0:14:12: Conclusion on the nature of science fiction as predictions of the future 0:16:33: Balancing the future and the present as a parent 0:18:05: The misconception of AI appearing out of nowhere 0:19:40: The history of technology and overestimating its capabilities 0:22:23: The impact of technology on labor and jobs 0:23:55: The narrative of creating better worlds through technology 0:25:23: The promises of digital technology in a capitalist society 0:26:12: Artists creating critical work on technology and inequality 0:27:39: Algorithmic dance and the work of Liz Santoro and Pierre Gaudar 0:30:53: Overclocking the human computer 0:33:37: Illusion of power in using AI systems 0:34:06: Show credits & thanks The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik About CRCI The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project. The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District. /episode/index/show/906492f2-fad2-4f7c-bd73-df7c5a19938b/id/28957563

There Is Always A Cost 12/05/2023

Dances with Robots IRL: A Conversation with Catie Cuan 11/30/2023

Dances with Robots IRL: A Conversation with Catie Cuan Sydney Skybetter sits down with choreorobotics innovator, Dr. Catie Cuan. They discuss her personal and professional trajectory, and try to answer the question: why dance with a robot? About Catie: An engineer, researcher, and artist, Dr. Catie Cuan is a pioneer in the nascent field of ‘choreorobotics’ and works at the intersection of artificial intelligence, human-robot interaction, and art. She is currently a Postdoc in Computer Science at Stanford University. Catie recently defended her PhD in robotics via the Mechanical Engineering department at Stanford, where she also completed a Master’s of Science in Mechanical Engineering. The title of her PhD thesis is “Compelling Robot Behaviors through Supervised Learning and Choreorobotics”, which was funded by the National Institutes of Health, Google, and Stanford University. During her PhD, she led the first multi-robot machine learning project at Everyday Robots (Google X) and Robotics at Google (now a part of Google Deepmind). She has held artistic residencies at the Smithsonian, Everyday Robots (Google X), TED, and ThoughtWorks Arts. Catie is a prolific robot choreographer, having created works with nearly a dozen different robots, from a massive ABB IRB 6700 industrial robot to a tabletop IDEO + Moooi robot. Catie is also a 2023 International Strategy Forum (ISF) fellow at Schmidt Futures and the former co-founder of caali, an embodied media company. Read the transcript, and find more resources in our archive: Like, subscribe, and review here: What We Discuss with Catie (Timestamps): 0:00:15: Introduction to Dr. Catie Cuan 0:02:23: Catie's PhD thesis on supervised learning for compelling robot behaviors. 0:03:19: How Catie balanced her dance career with her work in tech. 0:05:35: The skepticism and terror of bringing dance into a STEM environment. 0:06:20: Navigating elite STEM environments as a woman of color. 0:07:41: The history of dance and robotics at Stanford University 0:11:56: Contrasts between STEM and embodied practices. 0:12:44: Catie's relationship with the CRCI community. 0:13:30: The importance of artists in contemplating the meaning of new technologies. 0:14:31: Challenges of creating a complex dance performance with robots. 0:16:24: Lack of templates for realizing installation, performance, and robotics research. 0:19:58: Safety considerations and rules for performing with robots. 0:20:51: Why Boston Dynamics Spot robots and their expressive capabilities. 0:23:32: Contemplating the ethical implications of robot applications. 0:25:27: The future of Choreo Robotics and the importance of imagination. 0:26:00: Dance's role in depicting a universe of creativity and joy. 0:27:35: Choreographers are essential for successful deployment of robots. 0:28:26: Robot dances becoming more prevalent in various contexts. 0:30:04: Dance is essential to culture and human identity. 0:31:20: Dancing with robots is not a novel concept. 0:32:00: Show credits & thanks The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik About CRCI The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project. The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District. /episode/index/show/906492f2-fad2-4f7c-bd73-df7c5a19938b/id/28705463

Choreorobotics 0101 11/28/2023

Choreorobotics 0101 Sydney Skybetter gives us an inside look into his research into chorerobotics; the overlap of choreography and robotic motion planning. He and the CRCI team ask questions about the risks and the implications of the work, and what it means to make a robot do the mashed potato. See featured guests, read the transcript, and more in our archives at Like, subscribe, and review here: Key Takeaways from Episode 5: Dance can be used to make robots appear more friendly and palatable, but it's important to remember that they can still be dangerous. Teaching roboticists choreography and choreographers robotics can help make more nuanced decisions about motion planning. The future of dance and robotics requires considering the cultural, political, and ethical implications of these technologies. Artists can play a crucial role in shaping the future by working with technology companies and influencing the development of emerging tech. The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik About CRCI The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project. The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District. /episode/index/show/906492f2-fad2-4f7c-bd73-df7c5a19938b/id/28704428

Fierce on the Palm Pilot: A Conversation with Kamal Sinclair 11/17/2023

Fierce on the Palm Pilot: A Conversation with Kamal Sinclair Sydney Skybetter and producer Kamal Sinclair chat about the intersection of the cultural sector, emerging technologies, and the vintage hardware that shaped their childhoods. Are we all complicit in these complex cultural systems? Oh, and also, can we please bring back the Filofax? About Kamal: Kamal Sinclair supports artists, institutions, and communities working at the convergence of art, media, culture, and technology. Currently, she serves as the Senior Director of Digital Innovation at The Music Center in Los Angeles, which is home to TMC Arts, Center Theatre Group, Los Angeles Master Chorale, LA Opera, and LA Phil. Additionally, she serves as an advisor or board member to Peabody Awards interactive Board, For Freedoms, NEW INC.’s ONX Studio, Civic Signals, For Freedoms, MIT’s Center for Advanced Virtuality, Starfish Accelerator, Juvenile Bipolar Research Foundation, and Eyebeam. Previously, she was the Director of Sundance Institute’s New Frontier Labs Program, External Advisor to Ford Foundation’s JustFilms and MacArthur Foundation's Journalism & Media Program, Adjunct Professor at USC’s Media Arts + Practice program, and Executive Director of the Guild of Future Architects. She is the co-author of Making a New Reality. Sinclair got her start in emerging media as an artist and producer on Question Bridge: Black Males, where she and her collaborators launched a project with an interactive website and curriculum; published a book; exhibited in over sixty museums/festivals. Read the transcript, and find more resources in our archive: Like, subscribe, and review here: What We Discuss with Kamal (Timestamps): 0:00:00: Introduction to Kamal Sinclair 0:01:32: Discussion on the influence of Minority Report on technology and body interfaces. 0:04:56: Personal experiences with early mobile devices and anticipation of smartphones. 0:07:10: Exploring the cyclical nature of technology and imagining the future. 0:08:10: The role of a curator in identifying and bridging new forms of art and technology. 0:09:18: The importance of following the artist and supporting their vision. 0:10:38: Balancing the promise and ethics of technology in art. 0:12:29: Exciting emerging art in storytelling, aesthetics, and movement. 0:15:18: The power of imagination and action in shaping the future. 0:17:43: The relationship between bodies and technologies. 0:18:53: The influence of disability and otherly abled experiences on technology. 0:19:41: Dance historical perspectives on the bodies of the future. 0:21:26: The need to consider nature and relationships in future designs. 0:23:25: The negative impact of militarized surveillance technologies on marginalized groups 0:25:39: Discussion on the immersive VR experience of Birdly 0:27:02: Healing and altered states through immersive experiences 0:28:30: Managing complicity and the future of work for artists 0:30:41: Closing with the acknowledgement of not knowing 0:31:19: Show credits & thanks The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik About CRCI The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project. The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District. /episode/index/show/906492f2-fad2-4f7c-bd73-df7c5a19938b/id/28690128

The One With Tom Cruise 11/16/2023

The One With Tom Cruise Sydney Skybetter interviews John Underkoffler, the Science and Technology Advisor for the 2002 movie Minority Report. We talk about how the infamous computer gesture scene that made John famous led to the founding of Oblong Industries, a company that tried to make Minority Report’s speculative interfaces a reality. See featured guests, read the transcript, and more in our archives at Like, subscribe, and review here: Key Takeaways from Episode 3: 1. John Underkoffler developed the gestural interface in “Minority Report” by studying various gestural systems, including sign language. 2. Underkoffler formed Oblong Industries to bring the technology from the movie into reality and make it available for commercial use. 3. While Underkoffler has worked with various industries, he has drawn a line at directly participating in the development of weapons systems. 4. The gestural interface in Minority Report has had a significant impact on the film industry, academia, and defense industry. The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik About CRCI: The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project. The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District. /episode/index/show/906492f2-fad2-4f7c-bd73-df7c5a19938b/id/28667938

Oh Great, The Nazis Were Into Modern Dance: A Conversation with Kate Gow 11/14/2023

Oh Great, The Nazis Were Into Modern Dance: A Conversation with Kate Gow Kate Gow, CRCI’s archivist and web designer, sits down with host Sydney Skybetter to discuss historical intersections of dance and technology. Turns out that the weird history of dancers catching on fire, Degas, and the Nazis have a lot to do with the dance of the future. About Kate: Kate Gow is an archivist and designer of digital spaces. Her work revolves around memory, the body, and how we interact and perform with technology. She graduated as valedictorian from The Boston Conservatory, pioneering the Conservatory's first emphasis in Dance & Technology. In her sixth year with CRCI, she is moved to document the conference that unveiled to her the power and significance of artistic intelligence. You can find her in performance and behind the scenes as a Senior Professional Services Consultant at Quadient. Read the transcript, and find more resources in our archive: Like, subscribe, and review here: What We Discuss with Kate (Timestamps): 0:00:00: Introduction to guest Kate Gow 0:01:52: Kate's experience with fan blogging and writing fan fiction 0:05:17: Kate's multifaceted career in dance, choreography, teaching, and technology 0:06:16: The connection between movement, coding, and processing information 0:08:46: The importance of looking back at past mistakes in history 0:10:01: The evolution of dance technology and its impact on the art form 0:11:52: The focus on harm and the intersection of emerging technologies & the body 0:13:23: Being recorded and loss of control over what is seen 0:15:24: Who gets to make decisions about dance and technology 0:18:01: Choreographer Rudolph von Laban's collaboration with Nazis and dance history 0:21:09: Labanotation influence in robotics and other fields 0:23:29: Movement analysis of foreign leaders and body language consulting 0:26:10: Dancers seek stability in corporate collaborations for financial security 0:28:17: How Kate as a ballet teacher fosters agency in students. 0:30:26: Dance history provides lessons on the importance of bodies in technology. 0:32:07: Teaching consent and embodied interaction with technology through dance. 0:33:51: TikTok's algorithmic bias and the erasure of marginalized bodies. 0:35:00: Examining biases in technology through the lens of dance history. 0:37:47: Show credits & thanks The Dances with Robots Team Host: Sydney Skybetter Co-Host & Executive Producer: Ariane Michaud Archivist and Web Designer: Kate Gow Podcasting Consultant: Megan Hall Accessibility Consultant: Laurel Lawson Music: Kamala Sankaram Audio Production Consultant: Jim Moses Assistant Editor: Andrew Zukoski Student Associate: Rishika Kartik About CRCI The Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces (CRCI) explores the braid of choreography, computation and surveillance through an interdisciplinary lens. Find out more at Brown University's Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies' Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces thanks the Marshall Woods Lectureships Foundation of Fine Arts, the Brown Arts Institute, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for their generous support of this project. The Brown Arts Institute and the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies are part of the Perelman Arts District. /episode/index/show/906492f2-fad2-4f7c-bd73-df7c5a19938b/id/28630193

The Nerd Gaggle 11/14/2023

Dances with Robots - Trailer 11/08/2023

Dances with Robots

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