Interarts and technology sponsors interactive computer dance performance

Guest artists Mark Coniglio and Dawn Stoppiello will demonstrate their use of interactive computer technology in dance and perform three works from their repertoire on Monday, May 4 at 7:30 p.m. in the Margaret H’Doubler Performance Space in Lathrop Hall. Sponsored by the Dance/ Interarts & Technology program and the Humanistic Foundation Fund, the event is free and open to the public.

As artistic directors of the New York City based multimedia performance group, Troika Ranch, Coniglio and Stoppiello use emerging, experimental technology that allows performers to express themselves from within the performance.

Typically one or more sensory devices is placed on stage or worn on the body so a computer can gage what the performer is doing. One of the primary sensory devices used in Troika Ranch performances is MidiDancer which measures movements of live performers that, in turn, triggers computer controlled sound, lights and video images. MidiDancer consists of eight sensors built into a costume and placed at strategic locations around the body — the knee or elbow for example. As the performer moves and bends these joints, sound or lights or other media respond accordingly.

“In affect,” according to Coniglio, “the performer is afforded the same control as the orchestra: the ability to follow his or her instinct concerning timing and dynamics while the performance is taking place.”

Mark Coniglio is one of the foremost pioneers in the development of interactive technology combining MIDI and movement. He is a composer and computer programmer who specializes in technology for the arts. He has taught on the faculty of the California Institute of the Arts where he specialized in Interactive Music. He has created the technology device called the MIDIdancer and Interactor, a program which correlates movement to affect sound, lighting in live performance.

Dawn Stoppiello is a former member of the Bella Lewitzky Dance Company and artistic director member of Troika Ranch.