Performing Bits
Digital Culture Festival
How is technology changing the performing arts? And what happens when theatre, AI, and immersive technology meet? On March 1, the second edition of ‘Performing Bits’ took place at Stadsschouwburg Utrecht. During the evening, performances, installations, and experiments came together around the question of how digital technology is transforming the stage — now and in the future.
Technology as an artistic medium
In collaboration with Innovation:Lab, audiences were invited to experience the theatre in a different way. Through multiple audience flows and a digital app, visitors moved through the building along their own route, creating a unique combination of experiences for everyone. This unusual routing transformed the theatre into a layered environment full of discovery.
Outcome of the experiment
The programme brought together a wide range of formats: from live performances and interactive music to audio and visual installations, gaming, VR, and various applications of AI. Artists and audiences explored how technology can function not only as a tool, but also as an artistic medium that enables new ways of imagining and experiencing.
Diverse programme
Visitors encountered works such as ‘In:Space’, where dreams were translated into AI-generated visuals in real time. In ‘Exec.DEUS’, the AI confession booth by Theater De Maagd and URLAND, created in collaboration with Innovation:Lab, audiences explored whether a machine could take over the role of God. Alexander Kordzaia and Het Muziek presented an interactive game in which the audience could conduct a musical ensemble, while Michel van der Aa guided visitors through his work via the VR platform ‘Here’. In ‘Ancestors’ by The Smartphone Orchestra and Steye Hallema, audiences collectively searched for ancestors and future descendants. The evening concluded with an interactive jazz concert by Tin Men and the Telephone.
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