[Background] [Second Avenue] [Portability] [New Orleans] [Ensemble Studio] [Future]
Virtual Meditation #1: Introduction
Virtual Meditation #1 is an innovative synthesis of technology and theatre first produced by the ETC in the Spring of 2002. It was the result of a collaboration between ETC students (Ken Strickland, Billy Mitas, Nate Jones, Dan Schoedel, and Bryan Jacobs) under advisor Brenda Harger and playwright Sarah Ruhl (commissioned by the Actors Theatre of Louisville). Visit the original Virtual Meditation project website here.
The set is simple - two faceless mannequins, a park bench, a projection screen, and several computer terminals. Two volunteers are selected: their pictures are taken, their voices recorded, and then they are seated on the park bench beside one another. They are ideally strangers. The "volunteers" are hooked up to biofeedback devices (measuring heartbeat and physical contact between volunteers). The information gathered from these sensors controls the atmosphere in the show's scenery.
Above: Shots of Virtual Meditation #1 at the Humana Festival
The project was originally designed for a run at the Humana Festival, also sponsored by the Actors Theatre of Louisville. The show was most notable in its success at driving complete strangers to explore physical contact with one another, while sparking a continuing debate about the role of such technologies in today's theatre. The original presentation of VM1 led to several opportunities for the ETC, including an upcoming presentation at the ACM CSCW conference, as well as a potential partnership with the Ensemble Studio Theatre of New York.
Above: The Second Avenue Space, pre-setup
One of our earliest tasks was to adapt the existing Louisville equipment to fit in our allocated space at the ETC's Second Avenue space. We currently inhabit a raw, converted storage space on the second floor of the complex. The space bears a few similarities to Louisville - I-beams on exposed ceilings and unfinished floors and walls - but the room is much shorter and provides less throw space than the original venue.
Second Avenue Adaptation:
- Kept the existing screen until we began testing for New Orleans
- Old screen now lives with the Audience Interaction project
- Suspended the lighting projector from an I-beam on the ceiling
- Rear projector was placed in the far corner, as far back as we could place it
- Ventilation problems, so began work on suspending this projector from the ceiling
- Acquired new lighting trees for pre-show and atmospheric lighting
- Installed & re-connected all computers and sensor hardware
- Accomplished tech runs of the show for the Ensemble Studio Theater delegation
Lessons Learned from the Second Avenue Adaptation:
- When the mannequins are placed too far to the side of the screen, it creates a frustating split focus.
- You can't take anything for granted when changing venues: power, ceiling height, anything.
- Get all questions answered early, or you'll be caught off-guard.
- Functioning day-to-day is not as effective as working on a long-term schedule.
Above: The Second Avenue Space, mid-October
The second of our charges in caring for Virtual Meditation #1 was transforming the production from a single-venue, custom installment to a flexible and portable touring outfit. The previous group had worked miracles making the show presentable in such a short timespan, but the show was never designed to support multiple venues.
In order to answer the portability question, we made a few changes to the show:
Change #1: Replace the desktops with a pair of new laptops.
Trade-off: Laptops won't support multiple video cards or custom outputs. Laptops can be stolen. (see New Orleans)Change #2: Black out projectors until show is running.
Trade-off: This causes the loss of the "Virtual Meditation" text on the rear projection screen during the pre-show. (Old solution used 2 video cards to hide desktop activity.)
Change #3: Use of a lighting tree and custom projector hardware to hang the projector. Trade-off: The tree must be placed between the bench and the mannequins for proper throw distance, which closes off one side of the stage and creates slightly awkward sight lines.Change #4: Placards were re-made using carved foam blocks, cut into pieces, and re-mounted on-site on upright support pipes.
Trade-off: Easier to move, but still awkward.
Of course, the primary reason for improving VM#1's portability was our presentation for the ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work.
The Packing Problem:
We needed to get all of the equipment to New Orleans, but we were flying.
- Lighting Supplies & Power
- Portable Projection Screen
- Large duffle bags [4]:
- Bubble-wrapped mannequins [2 bags]
- Lighting trees, tripod, extension cords
- Placards & hardware
- Large suitcase:
- Mannequin bases, speakers, hardware
Total: 4 carry-ons, 8 checked bags.
Helium tank & park bench were purchased on-site.At right: Showcasing the new, portable VM#1
The First Day of Shows: A Solid Success
Show Setup in the Carrolton
We gained residency in the Carrolton at 6PM Sunday, and our first performance was scheduled for 4:30 PM on Monday. Setup went fairly smoothly, with the notable exception of Brenda's helium-tank-induced injury and related trip to the emergency room. The only significant problem turned out to be the camera: the new camera we were using refused to work. We ended up using Cheryl's personal camera and a borrowed CompactFlash card reader - and once we got used to it, we preferred the card reader to the direct connection.
The Nine Performances
We managed to get the show up reasonably on schedule, and we managed to "perform" Virtual Meditation #1 nine times Monday evening between 4:30 and 9:00 PM. Turnout was good - we averaged about 15 people per perfomance, and some performances had as many as 25 people in attendance. It was a hectic evening, but we managed to stimulate some real interest in what the show was trying to accomplish, and the show was regarded as a highlight of the conference.
The Loss of the Laptops: A Lesson Learned (The Hard Way)
In this context, Virtual Meditation #1 was being used to start a dialogue on collaborative and interactive theatre. Since Don Marinelli of the ETC was leading a panel on interactive theater on Tuesday morning, we had been asked before the trip to "perform" VM#1 after the panel as well. This required us to leave the show set upin the Carrolton overnight after our first performances. We allowed ourselves to accept the promises of extra security hired to watch our room as a false sense of security, and we left the laptops connected to the show equipment overnight as a result.When we returned on Tuesday morning, we found that the back door of the room was open, and both laptops and their bags had been stolen overnight. All of our Tuesday shows had to be cancelled, and rather than spending the day discussing the ramifications of VM1, we spent it filling out police reports and breaking down the show. It was a mistake to leave our valuable property in someone else's control, and we paid for that mistake dearly. Although the hotel is responsible for replacing the laptops, they cannot replace the man-hours spent getting the laptops ready for the show - and even more importantly, they cannot replace the missed opportunities presented by Tuesday's shows. We are truly sorry for the problems that this mistake and its consequences caused, and we hope that this experience can serve as a lesson to future groups - trust no one but yourselves, because it's your reputation on the line, not theirs.
The ETC/Ensemble Studio Theatre Summit [Pictures]
The desire still exists for Virtual Meditation to be converted to multiple languages, since the questions it asks are not limited to a single culture or language. However, the work in translating the script, re-recording dialogue with native speakers, re-animating the facial expressions and re-synching them to multiple languages is a task outside the scope of this project. That work could potentially bear another semesters' work in the ETC, or it could be brought to outside consultants.
Virtual Meditation as it stands is a fairly complete piece, and the only changes it can bear (while remaining intact) are technical in nature. There is certainly any amount of work making the code more robust or modifying the system so each face has its own projector, for example - but for the most part, we feel the show stands strong on its own, and doesn't require that level of technical overhaul.
The greatest task at this time is simply maintaining the show in a performance-ready state, while keeping the layout flexible enough that it can support the challenges of varied venues across the country. Hopefully, the improvements we've made will make this task easier for future groups, and make it possible for the ETC to bring this show to new audiences.
[Background] [Second Avenue] [Portability] [New Orleans] [Ensemble Studio] [Future]
