An ensemble of audiences and artists, a virtual performance

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You may say I'm a dreamer,
but I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us.
And the world will live as one

Maybe you could say I'm a dreamer
but i'm not alone
I hope you will join us someday too
Then the world will be one

John Lennon – imagine

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Performance culture changed by pandemic

So, online performances, which were used as an aid to offline performances, have emerged as an alternative in the untact era, and the XR industry that can support these online performances is attracting attention. This is because performances with XR technology added can deliver new experiences and sensations to audiences who are accustomed to the existing format.

due to COVID-19 untact(Untact)-based life and work atmosphere was created, and this was equally applied to performance culture. The fact that Canada's Cirque du Soleil, which has performed around the world since its formation in 1984 and attracted more than 200 million spectators, filed for bankruptcy protection due to a decrease in revenue due to Corona 19 can be a counter-evidence.

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A performance using XR adds a sense of immersion and creates a new format that has not been experienced in previous performances. Interactioncan experience Today, I'd like to talk about the interaction between the audience and the artist by examining four performances using these technologies.

BTS: LOVE YOURSELF (2018)

BTS, which debuted in 2013 and swept domestic and foreign rookie awards, is the top boy group representing Korea, and is currently creating a BTS craze all over the world. 21st century pop iconis being called

In the 2018 concert, for the first time in the history of a live concert Real-time ARwas used to create a mysterious atmosphere. In addition, the theme of the concert to love oneself and the song Trivia: Love went well with the stage direction and received good reviews.

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Big Hit Entertainment, the agency of BTS, Plan A, a Korean performance agency, and FragmentNine, which produces live events, devised the idea of using AR technology for RM's song Trivia: Love after discussions between the three companies. paid Later, the stage using augmented reality and special effects were used in the online concert Map of the Soul ON:E (2020).

Scarecrow (2020)

The scarecrow, which was submitted to the 36th Sundance Film Festival in 2020, is a VR device experience. immersive theaterSo, the audience and actors Corresponds 1:1 It is a VR play that tells a story.

Actors use motion and facial capture programs in front of the audience to interact in real time in front of the audience and act out their movements and facial expressions. It was created with the support of the Korea Creative Content Agency project at the Korea National University of Arts' Convergence Arts Center.

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Audiences wearing VR devices become participants in the play and enter virtual reality. And the actor who played the scarecrow Act according to the reaction of the audience and lead the story together. Using various technologies such as thermal detection and motion capture, you can feel the immersion as if you were a character in a real movie.

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And in the time of the pandemic Converting existing face-to-face works into non-face-to-face online performances Scarecrow VRC won the Spirit of Raindance Award at the 28th Raindance Film Festival in 2020. This award is given to the best work.

Scarecrow and Healer, the real actor roles VRChatIt is a real-time interactive performance that gathers on the online stage with users from all over the world who have access through (Avatar chatting program using VR) and join forces to move towards the ending. You can create various and touching moments together, such as experiences in the Emerald Garden and beautiful shooting stars.

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SOMNAI (2019)

After an audience member puts on a VR device at the dotdot.london venue in the UK experiencing firsthand It is one of the immersive performances, and as you can see from the images, it deals with lucid dreaming and exploration of the subconscious.

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The actions and choices of the audience wearing the VR device With five senses and virtual images It can transform into a fantastic experience. Upon entering the performance, the audience is asked to change into pajamas according to the theme, and then meets a dream guide who guides them through the world of lucid dreaming.

You will experience visual, tactile, auditory, olfactory, and virtual stimuli in a series of dream worlds created in virtual and augmented reality. While exploring the dream, the audience faces dilemmas of various choices.

At the end of the experience, a celebratory cocktail and breakfast set with ingredients that change according to the audience's choice is provided. Named one of the most influential British immersive productions of the past 20 years by UK Research and Innovation.

Cosmos within us (COSMOS WITHIN US, 2019)

This work uses storytelling that blurs the line between VR and reality. Through a combination of immersive sound, cutting-edge technology, smell and touch, the work explores the connection between memory and the senses.

real and virtual ambiguityis suitable for expressing the material of the work called Alzheimer's. For patients with memory loss hope and empathy It was created to convey and emphasizes that Alzheimer's can come to anyone.

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The audience becomes agitated by the mind of a 60-year-old man suffering from Alzheimer's. As they wander in virtual space, Alzheimer's memories virtual image It is constantly being reconstructed and changed.

However, it seems that his precious childhood has already been tainted. Through the VR experience, the audience is portraying the process of finding the memories he has been trying to forget in oblivion. Awarded at the 27th Raindance Film Festival in 2019.

The XR technologies applied to theater culture to provide new experiences are not only a movement to break away from the audience's familiarity, but also pioneer a new genre of theater through their participation. And the connection between performances and audiences like this will make the performance culture richer, like an ensemble of an orchestra.