All posts by Claire

Kinected with the environment

March 9, 2015 Claire

With this interactive feature of the play the actor of Gortsby can have different impacts on the scenery in the projection.

Setup on stage:

The Kinect is hanging from above the ceiling to capture the space in front of the screen.

The image is projected with a short thrower from behind onto the screen, so that the projector does not stand in the way of the actors on stage. It is mapped onto the outlines of the stage element, because this is not rectangular.

Backstage, we made a ‚saving-area’ around the projector with tape, so that nobody will fall over it or bump into it – because apart from injuries this also could influence the projection mapping onto the screen.

USE IN THE PLAY:

see also: Storyboard Kinect.

1) Revealing the City (Scene: Prologue)

Design of city skyline with window lights:

In the picture you see the outline of the London skyline of Westminster Abbey which is near Hyde Park, where the story takes place. The Prologue was created for introducing the city. Gortsby reveals the city through his thoughts, and also in the projection by walking past the houses. He is reflecting on the tiered society and the people who kind of fell out of it.

The design of the city mainly consists of shadow and light and high contrasts which can also symbolize the contrasts in society. Also the form of the window lights show different kinds of houses of different classes of wealth: One-family-houses, Villas, multy-storyed houses and apartment towers.

Technique:

When Gortsby is passing by in a certain area in front of the screen, the Kinect is capturing his position and triggers, that through the use of processing, just behind him the lights in the windows of the city are switched on. When he turns around and walks back the city lights are switched off in the same way. The effect of switching on and off is made by revealing the picture of the city in background. For this revealing we use the centre of the actor (captured by the Kinect) and send the x and y values (via OSC) to the processing sketch. Having the values of the centre point, we can control the movement of different objects on the screen.

2) Waving away the fog (Scene: Prologue)

Technique:

The city skyline transfuses into fog via processing. Through moving his hand in a defined area in front of the screen, Gortsby can now wave away the fog. Underneath he discovers a park scenery. For the waving we use the closest point to screen, which is in a distinct area. Through the Kinect we can measure the distance of this point to the Kinect. Like getting the centre values of the actor we also can get the x and y values of the closest point and additionally, the height (z value). Sending these three values to a processing sketch gives us the freedom to handle the z value of the coordinate system of the Kinect as an y value in the coordinate system of the display. We are able to translate the movement of an object in the area as a movement on the screen.

Meanwhile in his monologue Gortsby describes how the city more and more turns into a foggy „city of clouds“ and he ends with „I found myself within a city park, alone.“

After that a picture of the city park is fully shown on the screen without any fog.

Design of the city park:

The style is still held in contrast between black and white. You can see a park lantern, in the picture, since in the short story on which the play is based, the author describes that the scene takes place on a bench in a dark area between two lanterns. In the background of the picture you can also see another lantern and another bench. Behind the trees of the park you can still see some of the window lights of different houses and also the outline of Westminster abbey in the sky, so that the audience knows that we are in a park of a city.

This scenery is also used as a non-interactive background during some scenes (see storyboard).

For this purpose the picture has been animated. From time to time some of the window lights are switched on or off, the light of the lantern is flickering a bit and the glowing of the sky is also pulsating very slowly.

3) The Searching (End of Scene 5)

Technique:

After „the important witness“ of the young man’s story has turned up, Gortsby runs through the streets to find the young man again.

By moving in front of the screen, the background behind Gortsby is moving, so that it looks as if he was running through a shopping street. Like the beginning scene (“Revealing the City”) we capture again the centre point of the actor via Kinect and send the point to a processing sketch. The sketch translates the movement of the centre point to movement of the picture on the screen.

Design:

This picture is three times as wide as the other ones, so that it can be moved by Gortsby.

The skyline shows on one part still Westminster Abbey but also roofs of city houses in this area of London. As in the Prologue the environment is guessable only by the lights of the houses. In this case again through the light of windows of different kind’s of houses. In addition here you see also a lot of light advertisements in the streets.

All of these are related to the story: The young man tells Gortsby that he wanted to vist the Patagonian Hotel, but that this one shut down and a cinema theatre was opened there instead. So the sign of the „Patagonian“ is very light and next to it a bright „cinema theatre“ sign. You can find a „chemist’s counter“ and a shop called „Soapbox“, where the young man could have bought his piece of soap. Also „soapbox“ is an expression for a box on which someone can stand to hold a spontaneous speach in public – espeacially at speaker’s corner in Hyde Park London.

In the english version the young man also tells that if he would not find a place to sleep he would have to spend the nightat the Embankment. This could be at the edge of the river but also an underground station. So you see also an underground sign in the streets.

A taxi driver recommended him another hotel, and after having checked in the young man wrote a letter with the adress to his familiy he told. This is why „taxi“ and „post“ can be found in the picture.

Since we included into our skript also a poem about wine of Saki, the autor of the short story, and since also his pseudonym is taken from another poem about wine, you can also find „Saki’s Wine Shop“, besides „Hyde’s Pub“ which is on the one hand named after Hyde Park but on the other hand after Mr. Hyde of Jackyll and Hyde who are as ambiguous as the young man in our story.

„Clean Wash“ also is a hint on the symbol character of the soap in the story and the question if the young man is telling a true story or wants to trick Gortsby.

The style of the visualization and the use of Kinect resembles to the one of the Prologue to add a frame of style to the piece.

For further technology and design descriptions see here: Kinect it! and Kinect, shadow and light

Concept, Design

Storyboard – Kinect Use in “Dusk”

January 22, 2015 Claire

Prologue “Introducing the City” (2-3 Min)

Dark Stage, A basic city-sound-atmo begins.
GORTSBY enters through the door behind the audience and is walking forward to the stage.

GORTSBY:
Under that foggy sunset London glowed,
Like one huge cob-webbed flagon of old wine.

Mode 1Kinect: Press key. A dark city skyline is shown. GORTSBY walks along the skyline and behind him windows of the city houses turn on.

GORTSBY:
And, as I walked down Fleet Street,
the soft sky Mowed thro’ the roaring thoroughfares…

GORTSBY: …transfused Their hard sharp outlines, blurred the throngs of black On either pavement, blurred the rolling stream Of red and yellow busses, till the town Turned to a golden suburb of the clouds.

By pressing key in Processing switch to
Mode 2: The view of the skyline turns cloudy and disappears in fog.

or alternative transition:

By pressing key in Processing switch to
Mode 3: A screen full of fog. Kinect: By waving GORTSBY can wave away parts of the fog and uncover parts of the city skyline which shows now basically a park with some windows of houses in the background.

Scene 1 „Walking to the park “ (2-3 Min)

No Kinect

Scene 2 „Norman Gortsby“ (5 Min) Introduction into Gortsbys thoughts

No Kinect

Scene 3 „Elder man/ forlorn orchestra“ (3-4 Min)

Evtl. Mode 4: Video as background-projection with Park scene, moving sky and fog. No Kinect Interaction.

The ELDERLY MAN enters the stage. He is slowly walking out of the shadow, heading to the bench and sits down next to Gortsby After THE ELDERLY MAN sits down, through the performers movements the sound changes into a tragic – funny orchestral soundscape, illustrating the elderly gentleman as member of a forlorn orchestra, a tragic and funny figure. A pale half-light surrounds the elderly man while being subtly observed by GORTSBY.

Scene 4 „Younger man“ (10 Min)

Evtl. Mode 4: Video London Park, moving sky and fog. No Kinect Interaction

The ELDERLY MAN leaves. At the same time a YOUNG MAN appears . He is fairly well dressed but scarcely more cheerful of mien than his predecessor. He approaches Gortsby and plunks down on the bench with curses.

YOUNG MAN: Damn it! Why is something like this always happening to me?!

Short break; feeling of being expected to take due notice after this demonstration GORTSBY starts the conversation.

GORTSBY: You don’t seem in a very good temper. The young man turnes to him with a look of disarming frankness which puts Gortsby instantly on his guard. 

YOUNG MAN [thrilled, with loud voice]: You wouldn’t be in a good temper if you were in the fix I’m in. I’ve done the silliest thing I’ve ever done in my life.

GORTSBY [calmly]: Yes?

YOUNG MAN: Came up this afternoon, meaning to stay at the Patagonian Hotel in Berkshire Square when I got there I found it had been pulled down some weeks ago and a cinema theatre run up on the site. The taxi driver recommended me to another hotel some way off and I went there. I just sent a letter to my people, giving them the address, and then I went out to buy some soap — I’d forgotten to pack any and I hate using hotel soap. Then I strolled about a bit, had a drink at a bar and looked at the shops, and when I came to turn my steps back to the hotel I suddenly realized that I didn’t remember its name or even what street it was in. There’s a nice predicament for a fellow who hasn’t any friends or connections in London! Of course I can wire to my people for the address, but they won’t have got my letter till to-morrow; meantime I’m without any money, came out with about a shilling on me, which went in buying the soap and getting the drink, and here I am, wandering about with two pence in my pocket and nowhere to go for the night.

Long Break.

YOUNG MAN [with an embarrassed voice]: I suppose you think I’ve spun you rather an impossible yarn.

GORTSBY [objectively]: Not at all impossible. I remember doing exactly the same thing once in a foreign capital, and on that occasion there were two of us, which made it more remarkable. Luckily we remembered that the hotel was on a sort of canal, and when we struck the canal we were able to find our way back to the hotel.

YOUNG MAN [sensitively]: In a foreign city I wouldn’t mind so much. One could go to one’s Consul and get the requisite help from him. Here in one’s own land one is far more derelict if one gets into a fix. Unless I can find some decent chap to swallow my story and lend me some money I seem likely to spend the night on the Embankment. [with a warm voice in hopes that Gortby believes him] I’m glad, anyhow, that you don’t think the story outrageously improbable.

GORTSBY [slowly]: Of course the weak point of your story is that you can’t produce the soap.

The YOUNG MAN sat forward hurriedly, felt rapidly in the pockets of his overcoat, and then jumped to his feet.

YOUNG MAN [muttering angrily]: I must have lost it. GORTSBY: To lose an hotel and a cake of soap on one afternoon suggests willful carelessness…

The YOUNG MAN scarcely waited to hear the end of the remark. He flitted away down the path, his head held high, with an air of somewhat jaded jauntiness.

Scene 5 „The Soap“ (5 Min)

GORTSBY is watching the YOUNG MAN while he is leaving. GORTSBY is sitting and thinking about the Young Man’s story. He is not thinking what is going on around himself (in city or park), he is just focused on what younger man told him.

GORTSBY: It was a pity, the going out to get one’s own soap was the one convincing touch in the whole story…
London Skyline with Park Projection stops.

Introduction into the soap-theme. Visualizations of Gortsbys thoughts (Visual connota- tions about why it was the only convincing touch in the whole story and these connota- tions might be in relation with some concepts like soap-process, cleanliness, purity, inno- cence etc.) influenced by his voice.

[…]

Scene 6 „Meeting of Gortsby & Younger man“ (3 Min)

No Kinect or Projection

Scene 7 „The Turn“ (3 Min)

GORTSBY: Poor boy, he as nearly as possible broke down. I don ́t wonder either, the relief from his quandary must have been acute. Its a lesson to me not to be too clever in judging by circumstances.

Mode 6: London Skyline Kinect same principle as first scene: GORTSBY uncovers Advertisements (see below) while walking in front of the screen. Visualization of making his way back through a lot of advertisements for soap and hotels. The style is similar to the beginning scene. He passes by a post office and a cinema with a sign on it “Patagonian Hotel closed”. He walks along bars and shops.

Transition to Mode 7 Video of Park. Flickering lights. No Fog.

Then he is in the park again.

GORTSBY stops. Spot-Light onto the bench, where GORTSBY sees the ELDERLY MAN who sat next to him before. The ELDERLY MAN seems to search sth. poking and peering beneath the bench and on all sides of it.

GORTSBY: Have you lost anything Sir?
OLDER MAN: Yes a cake of soap.

Outro (2 Min)

No Kinect.

END

_________________________________

Click on the following link for Storyboard as row of pictures:

SB Kinect

Concept, Design

Kinect, Shadow and Light

January 18, 2015 Claire

Starting Point Task: Showing “Tiered Society” by using Shadow / Light and Tracking with Kinect

Pt. 1 – Conceptual Phase

Idea: Make a prologue scene which gives an atmosphere of the society before Gortsby first enters the stage.

Inspiration: „SEVENTH SENSE” from Anarchy Dance Theatre + Ultra Combos
http://youtu.be/iQlDEPLHPyQ?t=2m50s [Nov. 2014]

Light = people included in society“; Illuminated people” let white cubes grow by touching the walls

Darkness = people fallen out of society ; “Dark people” can destroy these buildings by touching them

Realization Ideas:

Tracking with Kinect which scans the stage. Being near the wall starts buildings of cubes on that wall.

Resulting Problem in conceptual content: there’s only good and bad.

Solution for this problem: Interactive Costumes which switch the illumination when they come in contact with each other. So people who where lit become dark when they meet a dark person and this dark person becomes illuminated.

Inspiration for this: „Gideon Obarzaneks Digital Moves“ http://youtu.be/qaT64TYsVgA?t=1m38s [Nov. 2014]

Technical Problem: Too difficult to realize switching of light of/around the costumes. Idea discarded.

Pt. 2.1 – Visualization Phase (Cubes)

Going on with the idea to let houses of cubes be built and rebuilt in the projection on the position of different persons on stage.

Cube: This cube is designed based on a house near Hyde Park in London where the short story originally takes place. Based on the topic „shadow and light“, it consists only of light-rays.

The cubes will grow to houses, when the light-people will come near the wall and raise their hands. When dark people come near these light-buildings they can turn them down again with a downward movement of the hand.

On the ground of the stage, lines of lights are moving like the lights of moving cars.

After that in the city will grow the park with bushes and street lights. The Stage could be split in different layers of gaze-textile on which will be projected.

Pt. 2.2 – Visualization Phase (Lights)

The idea of the stage design changed. It should now be built of abtract forms. So the resulting idea for our task was to make these forms the houses, and to project only window lights on them.The principle with the kinect stayed the same. For the park scene should be generated bushes instead of window lights. The light of a lantern in the park would be shown with theatre-spotlights.

Stadtmodul Parkmodul

For the next phase the interactive generating of the Forms should be realized with the application „Processing“.

Pt. 3 – „Processing“ Phase

The skript changed and it became clear that in our prologue-scene Gortsby will be the only performer on stage.

After having learned the basics of the application „Processing“, I tried to combine this knowledge of simple interactivity with our idea to let window lights be switched on and off.

The most easy and effective way was the following:

Window-Scene:

I created a picture which shows the tiered society by different kinds of window lights. You only can guess the houses from their lights. The rest of the pic is black except a sky which outlines the skyline of London.
With „Processing“ black bars are moving with the position of the performer so that behind Gortsby the lights will be switched on. When he goes back they turn off.

Working with fog:

a) While playing a bit more with basic functions of „Processing“ we developped a code which makes the whole scene be covered with dusk.

Now we use it as transition between the scene with the window lights and the park-scene.

Problem: In high resolution the outcome doesn’t run smooth.

b) The idea came up to let Gortsby wipe away the dusk and discover the park behind it.

For wiping away the fog we were first searching for a kind of eraser tool. But this was hard to realize. In the end we used a funktion called „painting-pixels“ and with some tricks it also worked:

The background is a pic of the park covered with fog. Where you move your hand in front of the Kinect, will be painted pixels. The colour of these pixels will be the same as the pixels on that position in a pic which shows the park without fog. So in the end the performer is painting the park without fog over the pic with the fog. But it looks as if he was revealing the scene.

For the outcome also have a look at our storyboard for Kinect use in the play.

Literature

Integration of Interactive Technology

December 4, 2014 Claire

Reference: Latulipe, Celine, Wilson, David, Huskey, Sybil, Gonzalez, Berto, Word, Melissa. Temporal Integration of Interactive Technology in Dance: Creative Process Impacts. In Proc. C&C’11, ACM Press (2011), pp. 107-116.

Summary: Regarding six university productions the text is dealing with questions in organizing a dance production, which includes interactive technology.

In what way will the different components of a performance production have an impact on each other and in which way this could be fruitful or negative for the development? On which parts of the process can be worked parallel and on which has to be worked together? Who has to be present during rehearsal time?

According to the answers on these questions the timing of the whole working process should be set.
There is not one right way of organization, but it depends on every single production, what has to be ready before the actors start their rehearsal. One should be aware of the time when you bring in technology, costumes, props, stage design, light, music/sound, etc. into the production process, because it will have an impact on the workflow and the outcome.

Relevance for our project:

It’s important to be aware, that all components of a performance production are linked. So everybody involved should at several points of the process talk to each other and adjust their work with each other. Considering the experiences of the authors of the text, we should plan our own workflow.

The text proposes a lot of productive questions, we should pose ourselves during the preparation and rehearsal-period as well as according advises:

Concerning Performers, Costumes and included Technique:

Shall performers develop their actions by using the interactive technologies or shall the use of technology respond to the actions of the actors?
Case 1 : Technology has to be ready by the beginning of the rehearsal with the actors.
Case 2: The choreography has to be ready/actors have to be ready to repeat their actions in nearly the same manner, when the technology is integrated into their play.
Case 3: Mixed version of 1 and 2. Technology has to be ready as a trial version by the beginning of rehearsals and both are developed in response of each other.

What hardware is needed for the project?
At least have the needed hardware set and in place before the production cycle begins.

Will the used technical devices be placed in the space or on the bodies of the performers?

Since placing technology on the bodies of the performers always has an impact on their movements, at least fake technology or trial versions of them should be included from the beginning into the working process of the performers.

Shall technology be hidden in costumes or be shown?
How will the body work of the performers have an impact on the devices (Sweat, pressure, etc…)?
Plan time to adjust the devices to resist as long as they are needed.

How much energy does it cost the performers to wear technology?Make performers feel as comfortable as possible in wearing devices!

How long does it take to get the actors into their costumes?Integrate more time in the planning or make the costumes put on more easily

Concerning Space and Technique:

When projections will be used in the play it is necessary to find a lighting atmosphere, which allows the performers to see well enough to be safe and also doesn’t wipe out the projections.

Which technical possibilities are given by the space in which is rehearsed and which in the space in which the performance will be shown in the end?

What will change when moving from one stage to another (be it from rehearsal space to stage or while touring between different stages?

Is there electric noise at the place which could disturb the devices needed for the performance?

Be aware of the used places while working to make the impact of miving as small as possible. Integrate special technical rehearsal time to adjust all components when moving to a new place.

Does the sound match with the acoustic circumstances of the space?Plan time to adjust the sound to the acoustic possibilities of the space.

Concerning the Team:

Who has to be present during rehearsal time?
At certain rehearsals everybody involved should meet. But the smaller the group is, the better, to have a high concentration level. Only people who are immediately needed should be there.

What kind of “care” does the technique require and who will be doing this during rehearsals as well as before, during and after performances?

Make sure if performances should go on or stop if technique isn’t working and who should take care of fixing it.

Pre-Observation

Stage and Video in “Kohlhaas”

November 20, 2014 Claire

Piece: Michael Kohlhaas | Theaterhaus Jena

Text/Direction: Hannes Weiler | Stage: Florian Dietrich | Costumes: Bettina Werner | Dramaturgy: Friederike Weidner

Focus on: Stage Design

General Description:

Frontal to audience was a big wooden wall as projection space. During projections you could see the wooden structure in e.g. the faces of the projected people. When using the live-camera the scenes seemed often as if a hidden private issue of the characters was now enlarged for the audience. Behind the audience was a another small room with a live-camera. This room represented the kitchen of the leading actor, in which he had conversations with his wife. The walls were covered with posters of cupboards. The actors were walking during the play behind the audience into this room.

In front of that screen, on the right, was standing a huge seashell filled with water. It was used e.g. to show the cure hotel in Baden-Baden. Lights directed into the water in the shell were making moving reflections on the walls (see video). Or Kohlhaas was enjoying a bath while he was burning Leipzig (a cardboard model of a city).

Left of the wooden wall, stairs were leading to a ca. 2,5 m high metal platform whose wall was covered with cardboard pieces. These were in several occasions ripped off the wall to make it a prop e.g. a letter (see video).

On the platform was a blue box in which was hidden a toilet-room with posters on the walls. You first discovered this room through the use of live-camera. The same blue box became later the entry to a stable (or the stable itself), when the groom of Kohlhaas fell out of the door streaming with blood.

Left to the audience the platform was leading to a stage with two floors.
On the top floor, the back-wall was covered with oriental carpets. A cheap plastic garden chair, which was used as a throne, was standing there and a short column and a speaker’s desk out of obvious fake marble. Scenes which took place in the official part of the Kurfürst’s (electors) castle were played there or official scenes in a hotel.
A ladder was leading through a hole in the ground in the right back corner to the ground floor. There was a long table with some old fashioned chairs and an old telephone on it. The turquoise wallpaper had golden shimmering baroque ornaments on it and trophies were hanging there. This whole space was separated from the audience with a Plexiglas (perspex) wall, which could have been covered with a mesh curtain (but never was during the performance). Live-camera was often used in this room. In this part of the stage often were played private scenes in the Kurfürst’s castle or a banquet was shown there.

A table with plastic chairs and a parasol was put from one scene on in front of the audience to mark a Hotel in Dresden.

Specific Remarks:

The Stage design was not only frontal to the audience, but also left of it
Live-camera was used to enlarge scenes or show scenes from parts of the stage, which you couldn’t see from the audience.
Live-camera was used to bring the audience into private or “hidden” conversations
parts of the stage where used as props
besides spotlights, reflections where used for the lighting atmosphere
same stage areas were referred to different places by acting different
beside the live-camera was also prerecorded material shown on the wooden projection wall

Exploring Interactive Theatre

All posts by Claire

Kinected with the environment

Storyboard – Kinect Use in “Dusk”

Kinect, Shadow and Light

Integration of Interactive Technology

Stage and Video in “Kohlhaas”

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