The role of interactivity in Klaus Obermaier scenographic spaces

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33732/ASRI.6880

Keywords:

Digital scenography, interactivity, dance performance, videomapping, Obermaier, real-time motion tracking

Abstract

This paper examines the role of interactivity in scenographic environments through the analysis of the intermedia dance performances of Klaus Obermaier.

Through systems of real-time motion tracking, computer vision, and body mapping, his work transforms the stage into an interactive device that eliminates the traditional hierarchy between stage, artist, and performer. In this context, interactivity becomes a generative dramaturgical principle, a process of real-time meaning-making that redefines experiences of presence, embodiment, and participation for both dancers and audience.

The analysis situates Obermaier’s practice within the broader discourse on digital scenography and contemporary choreography, arguing that responsive media redefine the terms of the artistic process and the role of the dancers.

Author Biography

Cristina Barbiani, Iuav University

She is an architect and PhD from IUAV University of Venice. She studied at New York University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston. She has collaborated with international artists and choreographers. She is the director of the Master in Digital Exhibit at IUAV, and her work focuses on digital exhibition design, video mapping and multimedia design. barbiani@iuav.it

References

de Lahunta, S. (2008). Blurring the boundaries: Intermedia performance and the body in digital space. In: C. Sommerer, L. Mignonneau, & D. King (Eds.). Interface cultures: Artistic aspects of interaction (pp. 225–227). Transcript Verlag.

Lindinger, C. (2013). The (St)Age of Participation: Audience Involvement in Media-Performance. Performance Research, 18(4), 123–133.

Mocan, R. (2013). Klaus Obermaier: “My work is not simply visualization…”. Ekphrasis: Images, Cinema, Theatre, Media, 10(2), 250–262. https://www.ekphrasisjournal.ro

Obermaier, K. (2008). Interactivity in stage performances. In: C. Sommerer, L. Mignonneau, & D. King (Eds.). Interface cultures: Artistic aspects of interaction (pp. 257–264). Transcript Verlag.

O’Dwyer, N. (2015). The cultural critique of Bernard Stiegler: Reflecting on the computational performances of Klaus Obermaier. In: M. Causey, E. Meehan, & N. O’Dwyer (Eds.). The performing subject in the space of technology: Through the virtual, towards the real (pp. 34–52). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137438164_3

O’Dwyer, N. (2021). Innovations in Motion-Tracking and Projection-Mapping: Klaus Obermaier. In: Digital Scenography: 30 Years of Experimentation and Innovation in Performance and Interactive Media (pp. 79–103). Bloomsbury / Methuen Drama

Portrait of Cristina Barbiani

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Published

2025-12-19

How to Cite

Barbiani, C. (2025). The role of interactivity in Klaus Obermaier scenographic spaces. ASRI. Art and Society. Journal for Research in Arts and Digital Humanities, (28), e6880. https://doi.org/10.33732/ASRI.6880

Issue

No. 28 (2025): Spatial characteristics in digital scenographic installations

Section

Artículos

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