People's Daily Examines Technology in Contemporary Dance Exploration

People's Daily reported that during a special showcase, technologies including robotics, motion capture, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence-generated imagery intersected with dance. These tools allowed dancers to step outside conventional stage spaces and prompted questions about what technology can contribute beyond novel visual spectacles. In the work Shell, a human performer shared the stage with a Unitree G1 humanoid robot using motion capture for real-time interaction. Although the robot recorded trajectory markers such as arm height and body rotation, it struggled to replicate physical details like breathing, weight distribution shifts, and post-exertion relaxation. Productions such as Embodied Dream and Non-Stop explored preserving dancers' actions through alternative forms. Embodied Dream converted movements captured by sensors into executable machine data, while Non-Stop used digital avatars to place movement in digital spaces for potential storage and reuse. Other projects utilized dance movements to manipulate stage environments directly. In Thunderstorm, a dancer's physical actions like raising hands and turning triggered visual changes in lightning and rain, linking the speed and intensity of movement to real-time shifts in stage imagery.