The Darker Edge Of Night
23 October 2009
…. It’s about time
Hellen Sky led this research and creative development project into hybrid performance and dramaturgy.
The Darker Edge of Night interdisciplinary collaborative team includes leading Australian and international artists from theatre, dance, sound, image, writing and media technologies. Margaret Cameron, Paul Bourke, Susie Fraser, Rebecca Hilton, Leigh Warren, Garth Paine, David Franzke, Dianne Reid, Tetsua Tabasha, Michael Pearce, Tim Bateson and Brandon Hur, all worked with Sky to develop new concepts and designs for interactive hybrid performance.
Their vision was to challenge traditions of theatrical scenography and dramaturgy by exploring the potential of technological influences and human/computer systems for telling stories. They experimented with spoken word and movement, sound and moving image, spatial design and virtual worlds, real time interactivity and chance.
In performance Sky actually and metaphorically attempts to inhabit the complexity of being ‘live’ in ‘real time’. She wore sensors which translate data from her brain waves, muscle flexion, breath and voice into real time evolving sound worlds. Live camera feeds transform the body within virtual and real architectural spaces. The scores and storytelling developed during this first stage of research are multi-sensory and highly poetic.
The Darker Edge of Night project is at the first stage of research and creative development. From October 2007 to August 2008, participants engaged in peer-to-peer cluster laboratories based at Culture Lab ARTHOUSE (Melbourne), and at tertiary technology research centres for interactive arts, VIPREe (University of Western Sydney) and WASP (University of Western Australia). Research outcomes so far have been published and presented in Australia and internationally.
In 2008 Sky presented stage one research and performances at the Australian Performing Arts Market in Adelaide and at the World Dance Alliance Global Summit in Brisbane, at CYNET ART 08 in Germany and the Brunel University in the United Kingdom. In August 2009 Sky and collaborators presented The Darker Edge of Night – A Slice of Light, a performance lecture at the Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts.
See further information about Hellen Sky and the The Darker Edge of Night project at her website
The Darker Edge of Night…. Its about time has been supported by the Australia Council through the ArtLab initiative. ArtLab brings together new interdisciplinary collaborations for creative research programs. Previous ArtLab projects include:
• Thinking through the body, 2008-9
• The Transmission Project, 2008-9
• The WIRED Lab, 2007 - ongoing
See further details about the ArtLab initiative
Image and video credits: The Darker Edge of Night... It’s About Time, Hellen Sky and collaborators (Tim Bateson, Margaret Cameron, Paul Bourke, David Franzke, Susie Fraser, Rebecca Hilton,Leigh Warren, Garth Paine, Michael Pierce, Dianne Reid,Sarah Rubidge, Brandon Hur, Tetsua Tabasha, BlueBottle Lighting), performance documentation from the Meat Market, 2008.
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