The Our Hybrid Future Symposium explored the impact and opportunity of digital technologies on the performing arts.
Over three weeks in September 2021, this Symposium brought together artists and presenters, from Nanaimo to Toronto, the U.K and Switzerland, to explore, experience and engage with new digital technologies being used in the performing arts.
Meet the Artists
Gilles Jobin: Exploring the new digital territories for Contemporary Dance
Gilles Jobin (he/him/his)
Artistic Director / Choreographer / Dancer / Filmmaker / Producer
Lives and works in Geneva, Switzerland
Gilles Jobin is an award-winning contemporary dance choreographer fascinated with new image technologies. In 2017 he creates VR_I and with his Geneva based dance company he creates digital dance pieces such as Dance Trail (AR) and La Comédie virtuelle-live show (multi user VR), his work is regularly invited in international festivals such as Sundance Film Festival, Venice Film Festival. Since the pandemic his company is fully digital and focusing on the creation of remote real time performances and collaborations.
Lee Erdmann: Creating Immersive Dance in 360 and XR Media
Lee Erdmann (she/her/hers)
Actor, Dancer, Choreographer and Filmmaker | MA, ACTRA, CCA, DTRC
Toronto, ON, Canada
Lee attained her MA (Distinction) from Staffordshire University’s Film and Media Studies program and is an academic mentor for Raindance’s post grad program. Possessing a solid background in theatre and film, Lee is focused on merging her love of both the visual and performance mediums by exploring and creating short format content with VR and 360 media. Lee advocates for the inclusion of diverse collaborators from the arts as crucial to the development of immersive and extended technology which straddles the divide between dramaturgy and cinematographic practise and approaches. She is also one half of Van Rooi Productions which produces cinematic content that seeks to tell visual stories that illuminate the concept of identity in our postcolonial culture. Lee is currently developing a narrative dance series in cinematic VR that centres around reconnecting with the earth as a pathway to healing, and landscape as a metaphor in the stages of feminist self-actualisation. You can see her performing live in VR as a lead in “The Severance Theory: Welcome to Respite” (Ferryman Collective/CoAct), a ground breaking immersive theatre production in VRChat during the 2021/22 film festival season (Tribeca, Venice Biennale, Raindance and more).
Andrea Nann: Firehorse and Shadow
Andrea Nann (she/her/hers)
Contemporary dance artist and founding artistic director of Dreamwalker Dance Company
Photo by Drew Berry
Andrea Nann creates work for the stage, film and outdoor sites; investigating contemporary approaches to creation through collaboration with individuals from all artistic disciplines. Andrea devises, constructs and delivers movement based opportunities for diverse peoples to come together and share unique lived experiences. Through her work she enlivens Dreamwalker’s invitation to awaken and experience ones self and the people and places around each of us; increasing potential for human connection, communication and originality. She dances to reach across distance, to experience others in celebration of possibility, diversity, connection and belonging. She is curious about how the intangible can be observed and given physical form in time, choreographed action, and setting. Andrea believes that dance can shift attitudes and ways of being, tuning us into what makes each of us distinct, to what we share, and ultimately how we can live together in wonderment and peace.
A graduate of York University’s Department of Fine Arts, Andrea was a member of the Danny Grossman Dance Company for 15 years from 1988-2003 where she created, performed and taught major roles from te works of Mr. Grossman and guest choreographers. Over a 31-year career in contemporary and modern dance, she has contributed to the creation of new works by over 60 dance/theatre creators. She continues to appear as a guest artist with Peggy Baker Dance Projects, Tribal Crackling Wind and Volcano Theatre. Long-time creative collaborators include dance artist Sarah Chase, musician Gord Downie, and writer Michael Ondaatje. From 2004-2015 Andrea created/produced 9 editions of multi-arts program The Whole Shebang and from 2012-2016 she devised/produced a 4-year/4-city multi-arts collaborative project; The Ontario Shebang. In 2018 she created The Welcome Project, addressing inclusion and cultural literacy based on internal and external challenges faced by Newcomers to Canada, and extends this unique practice to include others who are new to dance and interpersonal art experiences.
Freya Björg Olafson: I Post Therefore I Am
Olafson (she/her/hers – they/them/their)
Intermedia artist who works with video, audio, animation, motion capture, XR, painting, and performance. Winnipeg, MB, Canada
Freya Björg Olafson is an intermedia artist who works with video, audio, animation, motion capture, XR, painting, and performance. Her praxis engages with identity and the body, as informed by technology and the Internet. Their work has been exhibited and performed internationally at the Bauhaus Archiv (Berlin), SECCA – SouthEastern Center for Contemporary Art (North Carolina), LUDWIG museum (Budapest), and The National Arts Center (Ottawa). In spring 2020 Olafson was one of the longlist ‘Sobey Art Award’ recipients and in July 2021 was selected for the Lumen Prize for Art & Technology longlist. Olafson holds an MFA in New Media from the Transart Institute / Donau Universität and joined the Department of Dance at York University as an Assistant Professor in July 2017. As of July 2021 she is an Assistant Professor in Digital Media at the University of Manitoba School of Art.
Dr. Patrick Parra Pennefather: Integrating Emerging Technology within Live Production Processes
Dr. Patrick Parra Pennefather (he/him/his)
Assistant Professor at UBC Theatre and Film and shared with the Master of Digital Media Program (Co-owned by UBC, SFU, BCIT and ECUAD).
The teachings, research and examples of service presented here are an extension of my work as a technologist, instructional designer, and virtual and real assistant professor at the University of British Columbia. My research creation is focused on the design and composition of sound for physical and mediated productions as well as the co-creation, applied/experimental research and supervision of immersive technology projects. I work with amazing people within several intersecting communities of practice including the live performing arts, the digital media industry (games, xR, VFX, animation) in addition to the fields of cybernetics and biomedical visualization.
I co-construct worlds that extend physical stages to virtual arenas with a focus on the user/audience/participant/inter-actor/learner/teacher/human experience. Integrated values include persistent engagement, disruptive play, humour, prototyping and human-centered design, integrating various interdisciplinary perspectives (dance, theatre, music, installation, virtual performance, teaching, hybrids, games) across disciplines (performing arts, business, interactive design, xR and law). The types of research I engage in fall under the category of research creation, market research, applied and experimental research as well as educational research.
Behind the Motus Domum Experience with OZP
Osman Zeki (he/him/his)
Creative Technologist
Zack Settel (he/him/his)
Composer and Audio Experience Designer
Peter Trosztmer (he/him/his)
Choreographer and Dancer
OZP are a Montreal based trio of artists who work in collaboration.
Luke Garwood: Alive Stream
Luke Garwood (he/him/his)
Designer of hybrid media, Dancer, and Choreographer. Toronto, ON, Canada
Luke Garwood designs hybrid media, dances, and choreographs. Luke is based in Toronto, Canada and has collaborated with companies/individuals such as: Toronto Dance Theatre, adelheid, Sore For Punching You, Human Body Expression, The Dietrich Group, Tiger Princess Dance Projects, Citadel + Compagnie, Valerie Calam, Sashar Zarif, and Christoph Winkler. Luke has received six Dora Mavor Moore nominations, including a win for best ensemble in Heidi Strauss’ what it’s like. Luke also attained a B.Des in Digital Futures from OCAD University, receiving the Dr. Eugene A. Poggetto, and Dorothy Hoover awards. As a maker in new media, Luke investigates digitally translating the body by combining performance with AR, VR, and motion capture. Luke has also given lectures on AR in the context of art, archives, and activism at OCAD University, York University, Transart Institute, The Orillia Center for the Arts, and Arts Etobicoke.
Karma Lacoff Nieoczym: Family play with A/V Reality
Karma Lacoff Nieoczym and her 8 year old son, Corbin
Karma has been involved in the arts all her life, as a musician and dancer. She programs music, dance and theatre in Kelowna, BC for Creative Okanagan and the Rotary Centre for the Arts.
Her eight-year-old son Corbin is an avid video gamer, music appreciator, mover and fun kid.
Meet the Production Staff
Holly Bright: Curator and Presenter
Holly Bright (she/her/hers)
CURATOR AND PRESENTER
Holly Bright is Founder and Artistic Director of Crimson Coast Dance. The society was founded in 1998 to put a structure around dance events Bright had been creating and producing since 1996 while maintaining her own performing career. She has presented over 250 events: creations, productions, creation residencies with professionals, community and students and an annual Mainstage Season, a school year long youth program and a 4 day dance festival. Holly has received The City of Nanaimo’s 2010 Honour In Culture Award for her contribution to the cultural life of the city. Her Body Talk Youth program was nominated by the Chamber of Commerce for the 2015 Business Achievement Awards in Cultural Vitality in the Arts, and she received Canada Council’s 2017 John Hobday Award for Excellence in Arts Management in support of development and enhancement of cultural competence with Indigenous peoples.
Rebecca Ballarin: Designer and Producer
Rebecca Ballarin (she/her/hers)
DESIGNER AND PRODUCER
Rebecca Ballarin is a producer, director and creative educator currently based in Toronto, Ontario. She is passionate about community-building and has extensive experience in event planning, outreach, and audience relations. She is currently the Artistic Producer of both Pearle Harbour (a company that presents the theatrical work of Toronto-based drag queen Pearle Harbour) and Tweed & Company Theatre, and leads extra-curricular programs with Explore It! Inc. Rebecca works as a freelance digital producer, designing and hosting virtual gatherings, and, during her recent Metcalf Internship with Pat the Dog Theatre Creation, was one half of the inaugural Digital Catalyst Team.
Laurel Green: Designer and Producer
Laurel Green (she/her/hers)
DESIGNER AND PRODUCER
Laurel Green is a dramaturg and cultural producer whose practice is based in the creation of new performance work, with a focus on process. Her digital placemaking experience includes designing virtual environments in Gather for Femme Folks Fest, Festival of Live Digital Art (FOLDA) and SummerWorks, convening community for Together But Apart: Digital Conference on Touring Theatre in Northern Ontario, and Kingston Arts Council’s Essential Arts Thinking Group, and collaborating with Rebecca Ballarin as the inaguaral Digital Catalyst Team for Pat the Dog Theatre Creation. Recent projects: Remixed, an at-home App-based algorithm and DIY-installation change listening party (Trophy: undercurrents, In the Soil, Nocturne), POLLINATORS participatory gardening installation series (Yarrow Collective: SKAMpede) and asses.masses a video game performance about sharing the load of revolution (FIBA, Buenos Aires, The Theatre Centre).
Olivia C. Davies: Co-Host
Olivia C. Davies (she/her/hers)
CO-HOST
Olivia C. Davies is a Contemporary Indigenous artist who creates and collaborates across multiple platforms including choreography, creative writing, film, improvisation, performance, and sound design. Davies’ body of work explores the emotional and political relationships between people and places, often investigating the body’s dynamic ability to transmit narrative. Creations and collaborations traverse boundaries by conveying concepts and impressions that open different ways to experience the world. Her work has been presented in BC, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec since 2011. She is the Artistic Director of O.Dela Arts, the Matriarchs Uprising Festival, and is a founding member of the Crow’s Nest Collective (Vancouver), MataDanze Collective (Toronto) and Circadia Indigena Arts Collective (Ottawa). She honours her mixed Anishinaabe, French Canadian, Finnish and Welsh heritage in her work.
Laurianna Cordiano – Dumas: Administration, Website, Chat Support
Laurianna Cordiano – Dumas (she/her/hers)
ADMINISTRATION, WEBSITE, CHAT SUPPORT
Laurianna Cordiano-Dumas is a Katimavik volunteer at Crimson Coast Dance Society. She is a filmmaker and artist who is keen to learn more about how non-profit organizations and art can intersect. In her art, Laurianna aims to bring light to the idea of cultural identity, privilege and the complexity of art as a form of escapism.
Justin McFadden: Tech Support, Archive Recording Editing
Justin McFadden (he/him/his)
TECH SUPPORT, ARCHIVE RECORDING EDITING
A 2021 Graduate of Vancouver Island University Theatre Department, Justin has loved his job at Crimson Coast Dance. He is grateful for all the wonderful dancers, technicians and thespians he has met along the way, and is excited to see this long-anticipated symposium come to life.
