Performance Lab: Innovating Practice-led Research and Development in Immersive and Digital Technologies in Theatre and Performance
Lead Research Organisation:
Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
Department Name: Faculty
Abstract
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (Central) will renew and upgrade its facilities and launch Performance lab, which will act as a catalyst for research and development in Theatre and Performance in immersive and digital technologies. As a small specialist institution, Central is already producing world-leading research in collaboration with industry partners, as demonstrated by our REF2021 (Research Excellence Framework 2021) results in which we were the top-ranking small specialist institution with 75% of our research graded 4*. With the upgrade of our facilities, our aim is to enhance Central's practice-led research and development capabilities in immersive and digital technologies in applied theatre and performance, immersive and participatory practices, sound and audio performance, and digital performer training to increase our visibility and resilience, and, through working with external partners, to support the UK's creative and cultural economy. Our research is currently translated through Knowledge Exchange with external partners across the theatre and performance industry and beyond, including NHS trusts, museums, and heritage organisations. The funding will enable the launch of Performance Lab to support the development of challenge-led research in immersive and digital technologies, which will both consolidate our current research and extends its reach, visibility, and sustainability. The investment will enable Central to upgrade our performance and media facilities, launch Performance Lab, strengthen existing partnerships and generate new links in cultural industries, augment our current Knowledge Exchange capabilities, promote and facilitate the external use of Central's facilities for industry research and development, and provide professional development in the use and commercial exploitation of creative outputs. Research and development (R&D) will generate original creative approaches and new forms of immersive sound and XR for theatre and performance and enable Central to support R&D for external partners. An Advisory Board for Performance Lab comprising Central's researchers, Technical and Media Managers, and industry partners will ensure its work remains relevant in the research landscape and accessible to external partners. The application of immersive and digital methods to theatre and performance research has significant potential for growth in the UK. In order to keep pace with industry advancements, Central will make a major impact in the creative and cultural economy through the upgrade of our current facilities.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Bryce Lease (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Busby S
(2024)
Kenyan Rock Art: protecting the past, facilitating the future through immersive technologies, archaeology, and drama education
in Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance
Kate Elswit
(2023)
Debates in Digital Humanities 2023
| Title | '(Un)visible Monuments to Freedom' |
| Description | Development of a new immersive binaural sound exhibition 'Invisible Monuments to Freedom', which will tour to the Ethnographic Museums of Lódz, Warsaw and Krakow (2024-25). Expected audience numbers: 3-4000. |
| Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
| Year Produced | 2024 |
| Impact | Change in curators' approach to exhibiting sound, embracing immersive technology, reporting heightened visitor engagement. |
| URL | https://lodzwielukultur.pl/en/wydarzenia/invisible-monuments-of-freedom-exhibition/ |
| Title | 'The Passenger: Binaural Sound Installation for the Development of Berlin's Exilmuseum at the Tages des Exils Festival' |
| Description | Working with the UK-based SME Auricle, who are developing new theatrical strategies for spatialised sound, and the Berlin Exilmuseum (set to open in 2026), Lease's research from Staging Difficult Pasts and a pilot programme with the Manchester Jewish Museum was used to develop a curatorial approach to staging histories of the November Pogroms through binaural technologies. |
| Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Impact | The project changes the nature of the visitor experience in relation to museums of difficult pasts, moving away from the contemplation of objects to a relationship involving performative engagement and historical implication. Feedback from curators and audiences attending the pilot workshop in Manchester Jewish Museum and Berlin Exilmuseum demonstrated the impact of the project to date that will be extended to international audiences. Curators: 'I don't think I have ever been to anything in a museum where there has been this combination of light, sound, and close-up background noise as a way of storytelling'. 'This medium, this form of storytelling is very claustrophobic in a way that I cannot imagine in conventional theatre performance. It felt uncomfortably close to the action. Storytelling is about putting yourself in someone else's shoes, but the traditional way is not the most direct way of achieving that. This technology feels like a more effective way of putting you inside someone else's subjective experience.' Audiences: 'I thought it was exceptionally well done and I literally got goosepimples. It was the voices. You cannot see the person speaking and yet there was so much impact. It was more effective than having people on the stage.' 'It is less empathy and just more goddamn fear. What would I do in that situation? How would I cope with that? That is a question I shouldn't have to answer. Nobody should have to answer, but obviously people still do. I found the whole thing very, very powerful.' 'When you watch drama normally, it is so complete that your imagination isn't ignited, but this whole thing - your whole head was forming a reaction to what you were listening to. I started to picture something in my head - a room forming. That isn't something you do normally, because everything is in front of you and you don't have to think. I don't know how much of this work goes on, but I think it's really special.' 'It really gave you room to paint your own picture. You don't hear him speak, so you fill in the gaps. You only listen to the inner voice, and the inner voice makes a lot of sense. Listen, you know you have go to get out. That was so immersive. It was a great medium, it really was a great medium. You watch a film, you read books, but this was bit different, it put you in there more so than say Schindler's List, or when we walked around the Anne Frank Museum. We are not of Jewish heritage, it is about learning history really, and to find out what happened and why. I found that a really emotional experience to be honest.' |
| URL | https://www.auricle-productions.co.uk/the-passenger |
| Title | 'The Passenger: Binaural Sound Installation: National Bibliotheke Frankfurt |
| Description | Having developed the immersive sound installation, 'The Passenger' (Der Reisender), at the Manchester Jewish Museum and the Berlin Exilmuseum, the curators of the Exilarchiv at the National Library in Frankfurt then purchased the installation for "Exile: Experience and Testimony", a permanent exhibition at the Nationalbibliotheke that is accessible free of charge from Monday to Saturday. Starting from the end of 2024, the installation is planned to be a part of the exhibition until 2029. |
| Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
| Year Produced | 2024 |
| Impact | The Der Reisender project has had a profound impact on the Nationalbibliothek in Frankfurt, enhancing the curation of their permanent exhibition and deepening audience engagement with themes of exile and displacement. Through immersive audio installation, this project has transformed visitor experience, offering a unique and emotive way to connect with the history and legacy of Ulrich Boschwitz's novel. |
| URL | https://www.dnb.de/EN/Kulturell/DA-DEA/daDea_node.html |
| Title | New Digital Scenographies - Sadler's Wells |
| Description | A new full-length work by Eva Recacha, The Picnic presents a large group of young humans enjoying themselves in a surreal blend of parading, celebrating, indulging and co-operating activities, all emerging from a dreamlike picnic scenario. The work, co-created with a group of collaborators and a cast of professionals and participants, explores themes of utopia and it is inspired by the painting 'The Garden of Earthly Delights' by H. Bosch, which presents many human figures in a terrestrial paradise, indulging in worldly pleasures. At The Picnic, a self-made feast, we create moments of visibility and dignity - for ourselves and others-, moments of recognition, of freedom, of care, alongside moments of desire, pleasure, joy, and revel. The tone is that of a dream; filled with strange scenarios of strong visual and aural textures that invite our senses to indulge into physical sensations and our minds to follow surreal invitations. |
| Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
| Year Produced | 2024 |
| Impact | Co-commissioned by Sadler's Wells and South East Dance, with support from LCDS, the Spanish Embassy, and Arts Council England, it benefits from strong institutional backing, enhancing its visibility and influence. By fostering community engagement and multisensory experiences, the work highlights performance's role in equity, inclusion, and social connection. |
| URL | https://www.sadlerswells.com/whats-on/eva-recacha-the-picnic/ |
| Title | Salt of the Earth |
| Description | Peter Rice developed Salt of the Earth, an environmental art project for the Venice Film Festival 2025. Created in collaboration with Sophie Hunter Studio, this multi-faceted project includes an installation, performance, film, and community chorus focusing on the environmental effects on global salt marshes. Composer Isobel Waller-Bridge and Peter Rice have crafted a complex soundscape that utilises advanced spatial sound techniques and additional equipment provided by Performance Lab. This technology allows for precise voice localisation within the expansive venue of Guideca's old salt warehouse. Salt of the Earth debuted on 8 August 2024, with plans for future installations at various venues and festivals starting in 2025. |
| Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
| Year Produced | 2024 |
| Impact | The project highlights the environmental challenges facing global salt marshes, which are critical ecosystems for biodiversity and climate regulation. It fosters greater awareness and engagement, prompting discussions on conservation efforts. Collaborations with community choirs encourage local activism and community-driven environmental initiatives. The use of advanced spatial sound techniques and voice localisation push the boundaries of immersive environmental art. The involvement of Performance Lab suggests cutting-edge audio technology, influencing future installations in performance art and sound design. As an interdisciplinary project blending installation, performance, and film, it sets a precedent for future environmentally conscious art projects. |
| URL | https://www.eventbrite.com/e/salt-of-the-earth-a-performance-installation-premiering-in-venice-ticke... |
| Title | The Edges of Ailey - Whitney Museum |
| Description | The Whitney Museum of American Art were preparing an exhibition on Alvin Ailey and approached Kat Elswit with a proposal for developing datasets and visualisations from the Ailey Archive for the exhibition, which would be based on methodology and software developed as part of an AHRC-funded project, Dunham's Data (2018-22). This would make use of this methodology and software in a new context, enable the project team to test their methodologies with a new dataset, and provide the Whitney with an exciting element for their exhibition, displaying data in a visual format that would appeal to visitors. The IAA funded the preparation of data sets and visualisations from the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Archive for display in an exhibition and in the exhibition catalogue. It enabled the unreleased data from the archive to be unlocked and suitable for display in an exhibition and for the testing of this methodology in an exhibition setting. The project is now in a further development phase exploring other applications for the methodology, both in exhibition and education settings. |
| Type Of Art | Artefact (including digital) |
| Year Produced | 2024 |
| Impact | Key outcomes: 410,000 visitors to The Edges of Ailey exhibition and associated events Positive reviews for the exhibition, some of which specifically mention the visualisations Exhibition made several 'best ten' lists of 2024 Potential ongoing activity with Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre, and a collaborative relationship with them and the Whitney developed as part of the project Nominations for the Dance Studies Association 'Dance in the Public Sphere' award and a Data Visualization Society 'Information is Beautiful' award, both announced later in 2025 Creation of a new consultancy company to facilitate future data visualisation work. Key impacts to date: New ways of thinking and doing, influencing creative practice in both the Alvin Ailey archive and the Whitney Preservation of the Ailey archive in a form that can be displayed and used Production of new cultural artefacts in the form of the visualisations, a catalogue essay, and online videos Audience understanding of and engagement with the subject matter in the exhibition |
| URL | https://whitney.org/exhibitions/edges-of-ailey |
| Title | World Kiosk |
| Description | Building on expertise in creative health and well-being, David Shearing extended work from his New Beginnings project to produce a touring kiosk of hyperlocal arts provision which was presented at the Norfolk and Norwich Festival, Brighton Festival and Greenwich and Docklands International Festival. Picture this: a street kiosk disrupting the fabric of everyday life. An intimate and enchanting digital sound and light installation where communities collide. Sip tea amidst a calming atmosphere, engaging in thought-provoking conversation, encouraging new connections. Put on headphones and be transported into a place where stories come alive. Listen and connect with the life journeys of what makes people all over the world who they are. |
| Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
| Year Produced | 2024 |
| Impact | Increase in local engagement in areas of traditionally low cultural engagement. |
| URL | https://withoutwalls.uk.com/programme/world-kiosk/ |
| Description | . Performance Lab's research has thus far produced award-winning practice research projects that delivered impact with external collaborators through intersectoral partnerships that bridge diverse fields, including the heritage and museum sectors, emerging technologies, and medicine. Performance Lab's impact has been multifaceted, encompassing the engagement of diverse audiences, fostering cultural understanding, innovating museum curation and interpretation, diversifying visitor experiences, elevating underrepresented voices, enhancing social inclusivity and local growth, advancing the fields of arts and healthcare, and contributing to environmental awareness, preservation of cultural assets, and sustainable economic development. |
| Exploitation Route | E3 Funding will upscale Performance Lab's research in theatre, dance, and performance, which offers unique use-cases to develop the sense-making and indeed world-making properties of emerging technologies. PTEQ's strategic and sustainable expansion plan will build upon Performance Lab's track record in developing new skill sets, exploiting untapped potential, and engaging in risk-sharing to explore novel approaches. This will be facilitated through the creation of a centre that will be housed in three newly designed performance labs: Sonic Lab, Motion Lab, and Media Lab. While Central will invest in the Sonic and Motion Labs, we are requesting E3 funding to build the Media Lab, which is crucial to accommodate the expansion of research in performance technologies; enable R&D with external partners; provide space for academic staff, doctoral students, and creative technologists; and to ensure financial sustainability as a resource for external hire. In partnership with industry leaders, PTEQ will enable the exploration and growth of research in areas such as spatial audio, motion capture, and extended reality. Moreover, Central's robust institutional leadership, excellent research environment, and strategic and financial commitment will support PTEQ in upscaling Performance Lab's capacity. New research will innovate methodologies and share best practice to develop the talent pipeline, increase the diversity of creators, and focus on inclusive technological applications to enhance innovation. This includes the creation of new performance-led solutions to address social challenges, such as climate change, carbon reduction, public health, and technological equity, including algorithmic bias, data provenance, and digital accessibility. PTEQ's Media Lab has become a vital hub for research and innovation in performance and immersive technology, supporting groundbreaking projects that push the boundaries of digital scenography, storytelling, and training. From ScanLab's development of Felix's Room for the Berliner Ensemble and Digital Theatre Plus' pedagogical videos on new scenographic techniques to Unform Experiences' VR training initiative Rania's Journey with the British Red Cross, these collaborations have advanced industry practices, enhanced education, and demonstrated the power of immersive media for social impact. Through these partnerships, the Media Lab has strengthened its reputation as a leader in interdisciplinary research, fostering new methodologies, attracting future collaborations, and influencing the broader cultural, educational, and humanitarian sectors. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy Creative Economy Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) Education Environment Healthcare Leisure Activities including Sports Recreation and Tourism Government Democracy and Justice Culture Heritage Museums and Collections |
| URL | https://www.cssd.ac.uk/news/central-receives-research-england-investment-to-establish-performance-technology-equity-centre |
| Description | Performance Lab has been a pioneering exploration at the intersection of technology, art, and well-being. We have successfully created new immersive sound exhibitions at the Manchester Jewish Museum, Berlin Exilmuseum, and the German National Library along with notable productions at the National Theatre and Almeida Theatre. The installation of the d&b Soundscape advanced immersive audio techniques for accurate audio imaging. Performance Lab has notably advanced VR and XR technologies, enhancing well-being and accessibility while exploring actor techniques and gender identity through innovative projects like a VR "A Christmas Carol" and "Shapeshifter". We have tested new production models, while also upskilling sound engineers in spatial audio and educating marketing teams on new digital audiences. A project with TARA and the National Museum of Kenya offered new insights into the effects of climate change, increased public engagement, and expanded educational opportunities for school children. A project focused on Black dance and motion capture has been recognized with an AHRC fellowship, fostering collaborative cultural co-production. With a successful bid for E3 funding (£5.6mil), Performance Lab is set to upscale to the Centre for Performance, Technology, and Equity, promising to amplify its impact and reach. Performance Lab also helped to produce 'Havering London', a new culture and placemaking organisation co-founded by Dr David Shearing and Mathew Russell, which has secured £1.6m of investment to bring to life Havering's new Cultural Strategy, 'A Good Life'. This funding supports a three-year programme from April 2025. 'A Good Life' is a bold strategy to grow Havering's cultural landscape, empowering communities to shape a vibrant and equitable cultural life. By placing local people at the heart of decision-making, it fosters wellbeing and belonging. Through participatory initiatives, networks and co-designed programmes, residents will gain the skills and opportunities to influence the borough's creative future. This is catalysed by £500,000 of Place Partnership funding from Arts Council England, enabling new partnerships and innovative ways of working to meet the borough's cultural needs, and £250,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, celebrating and promoting Havering's diverse heritage. A fundraising initiative to secure public and private sector support for 'A Good Life' was launched in March 2024, following the campaign to become London Borough of Culture. This initiative builds on the momentum of 50 organisations and 1,000 members of the public who collaborated to develop the bid. The Place Partnership will drive cultural regeneration and formalise collaboration between key organisations, including Central's Centre for Performance, Technology, and Equity (PTEQ) which is dedicated to innovating ground-breaking approaches to immersive and digital technologies from a performance-led perspective, in tandem with promoting social equity. Other key partnerships will include Fuse (Local Cultural Education Partnership), Havering Changing (CPP), Creative Health Havering, New City College, London Borough of Havering, Havering Museum, Romford BID, and Havering London. Performance Lab has upscaled to PTEQ (Performance, Technology, and Equity), which will contribute to 'A Good Life' through research, knowledge exchange, education and health initiatives, digital projects and cultural development work. PTEQ has been selected to collaborate with the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) on a pioneering research and development challenge exploring virtual production (VP) in live theatre. Launching in January 2025 and supported by XR Network+ at the University of York, the project brings together PTEQ's expert team-David Gochfeld, Kate Lane, and Sam Crane-with Agile Lens, Preevue, and Threshold Acoustics to develop and test a virtual rehearsal room prototype. Working closely with RSC creatives and technical teams, this initiative advances XR performance research and contributes to the RSC's mission to expand access to live performance worldwide. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2023 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Creative Economy,Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Environment,Healthcare,Leisure Activities, including Sports, Recreation and Tourism,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Impact Types | Cultural Societal Economic Policy & public services |
| Description | ACE Project Fund |
| Amount | £21,098 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts Council England |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2024 |
| End | 07/2025 |
| Description | Digital Black Dance Ecologies Network |
| Amount | £82,627 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | AH/Y002326/1 |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2023 |
| End | 04/2025 |
| Description | E3 Expanding Excellence in Englad |
| Amount | £5,633,756 (GBP) |
| Organisation | United Kingdom Research and Innovation |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2024 |
| End | 07/2029 |
| Description | Havering Unearthed |
| Amount | £250,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Heritage Lottery Fund |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2025 |
| End | 03/2027 |
| Description | IAA Challenges Fund |
| Amount | £36,308 (GBP) |
| Organisation | United Kingdom Research and Innovation |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 04/2023 |
| End | 11/2023 |
| Description | IAA Challenges Fund - Lost and Found |
| Amount | £20,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2024 |
| End | 09/2024 |
| Description | IAA Follow-On Funding - Community Lifelines |
| Amount | £73,712 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2023 |
| End | 07/2023 |
| Description | IAA Follow-On Funding - Edges of Ailey |
| Amount | £27,435 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 02/2023 |
| End | 09/2024 |
| Description | Impact Accelerator Account |
| Amount | £18,826 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2024 |
| End | 09/2024 |
| Description | Interdisciplinary AI grants |
| Amount | $90,000 (USD) |
| Organisation | Ohio State University |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United States |
| Start | 01/2023 |
| End | 12/2023 |
| Description | KE for those not in receipt of HEIF |
| Amount | £49,760 (GBP) |
| Organisation | United Kingdom Research and Innovation |
| Department | Research England |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2023 |
| End | 09/2023 |
| Description | Place Partnerships Funding |
| Amount | £500,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts Council England |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2025 |
| End | 03/2028 |
| Description | Research Grant |
| Amount | £82,626 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | AH/Y002326/1 |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2023 |
| End | 04/2025 |
| Description | Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Impact Acceleration Account, 2022-25 |
| Amount | £607,329 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | AH/X003418/1 |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2022 |
| End | 03/2026 |
| Description | 101 Outdoor Arts National Centre for Arts in Public Spaces |
| Organisation | 101 Outdoor Arts National Centre for Arts in Public Spaces |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | Joint supervision of a Collaborative Doctoral Award student based at 101 Arts Director of PTEQ, PTEQ Postdoc, PTEQ Creative Technologist, PTEQ Partnerships Lead and PTEQ Manager are collaborating with 101 Arts on the planning for two linked events to take place at 101 Arts in June 2025. Site and Sound one day Symposium and Base Frequencies Lab, a three day sandpit exploring the ways that sound, place and public can intersect with the outdoors. • The One Day Symposium will bring together artists, designers, technologists, and researchers explore how the use of sound-led practice in the outdoors can create experiential opportunities for diverse audiences to access arts, culture, and collective memory. • The Three day Sandpit will be a collaborative, peer-to-peer space for practitioners and theorists to exchange practices and skills in outdoor sound. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Joint supervision of a Collaborative Doctoral Award student based at 101 Arts Collaboration with PTEQ on the planning for the Site and Sound one day Symposium and Base Frequencies Lab, three day sandpit Hosting of the symposium and three day sandpit at the 101 Arts venue on Greenham Common Ticketing, booking, marketing of the events. |
| Impact | Collaborative Doctoral Awards |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) |
| Organisation | Association of British Theatre Technicians |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | PTEQ Partnerships Lead and PTEQ Academic are collaborating with ABTT on development of a new technical training programme. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Contributing expertise in skills training to the development of a new Training programme. |
| Impact | Industry track training still in development |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | Nottingham VIP Studio Residency |
| Organisation | University of Nottingham |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Development of VR performance |
| Collaborator Contribution | Use of facilities |
| Impact | Pùca, a liminal shapeshifting nature sprite from Celtic folklore, helps us bridge the gap between the natural world and that of the human world immersing the audience in the new ways of seeing that our technology is offering us. This 40-minute location-based experience leverages live motion capture and VR headsets for up to 12 participants at a time. Led by non-binary actor and motion capture expert Maggie Bain as Pùca, we guide the audience through five diverse environments, showcasing nature's evolution beyond sexual and gender binaries. To realise Pùca's abilities we are creating avatars that hack facial rigs, allowing Pùca to 'shape-shift' emotionally and expressively. The audience will interact within each environment, from traversing the veins of a decomposing leaf to exploring micro-macro aspects of nature. By weaving storytelling with immersive technology, we aim to highlight the often-overlooked diversity and fluidity of the natural world and how it can help us understand ourselves and our place within it. This project serves as a personal exploration of queerness in nature, and also as an invitation to reawaken our connection to the mystical power of nature, through a captivating and transformative experience. |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | African Rock Art: Protecting the Past, Facilitating the Future (ARA) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | African Rock Art (ARA) is a Knowledge Exchange project funded by The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (Central), that brings together Professor Selina Busby, applied theatre and digital technology company C&T the Trust for African Rock Art (TARA) and the Nairobi National Museum. The aim of the project is to celebrate Kenya's historic Rock Art by creating a digital and virtual reality "rock art safari" that incorporates applied theatre and drama education techniques. This resource will be rolled out in 30 Kenyan schools in an informal housing settlement within Nairobi in the summer of 2023. In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces that typically are vertical stone surfaces. Rock Art is a global phenomenon that is found in many culturally diverse regions of the world including in Kenya. This project uses C&T's Prospero platform to create a unique fusion of drama and technology to bring these historic, remote art works to a whole new generation of young Kenyans, living in some of the poorest communities in Nairobi and then to young people in schools in England. The Virtual Reality package will also be available anywhere in the world via the project website. C&T has a well-developed programme of work in Korogocho, working with a local drama practitioner and digitally facilitating drama work here for over ten years. This partnership with TARA, The National Museum of Kenya and Central via Prospero will connect schools in an innovative new project to bring the riches of these Rock Art sites to life in vibrant, creative ways. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.cssd.ac.uk/Research/Research-Outputs-and-Projects/Current-Research-Projects/african-rock... |
| Description | CONFINEMENT Motherhood & the Pandemic: Screening, Workshop, Discussion/talk |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Interdisciplinary artists Ceschi + Lane invite you to join them in a playful exploration and celebration of motherhood during the pandemic, through film screenings and workshops, introducing their unique practice of costume-based performance. Since 2022, their project CONFINEMENT has been exploring how provocative and political ideas around motherhood, childbirth, maternal mental health, isolation, disease, and the body's relationship to nature, can be embodied through costume, inviting local mothers and birth parents to share their experiences and stories. Come along to Shoreditch Town Hall for the culmination of this project for a free event, which will include premier screenings of the films created with Vicki Thornton, artists Q&A panel, and a creative materials workshop where you can make your own wearable sculpture. This event is a chance to be creative, connect with other mothers and birth parents as well as academics, artists and local support organisations, with the opportunity to access further workshops online and contribute to the virtual community "patchwork" on Ceschi + Lane's website(Opens in new window). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.beinghumanfestival.org/events/confinement-motherhood-pandemic |
| Description | Industry workshop 'Co-Creating Place' |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | In this engaging and interactive session, professional practitioners delved deeply into the methods of community building and co-creation within the realms of performance and art practice at Derby Theatre. The exploration was guided by David Shearing, the visionary founder of the innovative art studio Variable Matter. Shearing's extensive experience and unique perspective provided invaluable insights into the social and ethical dimensions involved in the creation of community placemaking projects. Throughout the session, participants had the opportunity to examine various techniques and strategies that fostered collaboration and inclusivity in art practice, ensuring that community voices were heard and represented in meaningful ways. By integrating these principles, artists and practitioners were empowered to create impactful and transformative works that resonated with and uplifted the communities they engaged with. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://derbytheatre.co.uk/event/co-creating-place-workshop/ |
| Description | Motion Capture Performance and Pedagogy |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Motion capture has become a key tool for film and video game production and is an increasingly important source of work for actors. But many actors encounter this challenging technology for the first time on a shoot, without time for adequate preparation - causing frustration on all sides in the industry. To respond to this, Central Associate Lecturer Tom Linden-McCarron and Performance Lab Fellow David Gochfeld devised the symposium to focus on the question of training actors for motion capture performance. This full day programme of talks and workshops centred on the practice of motion capture performance and speakers included educators in performance and computer animation from the UK and the US, and professional motion capture performers, directors and choreographers. Over 70 people joined in-person and 30 more online, from the UK, the US and Europe. The symposium enabled actors to learn and practice mocap performance and speakers shared their experience adapting techniques from different schools of actor training. These included Viewpoints, Michael Chekhov technique, and Indian rasa theory. In the workshops, participants explored how physical techniques from the Lecoq school, Faye Simpson's Lucid Body, and the Commedia dell'Arte can inform an actor's approach to motion capture performance. Zoe Mavrides introduced us to the lucid body and how this movement could help actors portray characters throughout a shoot. Robin Berry from East 15 Digital Media MA took the group through the 5 stages of movement, a technique originated for combat shots but applicable to any motion capture sequence. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.cssd.ac.uk/blog/motion-capture-performance-and-pedagogy-symposium-september-2024 |
| Description | Performance Studies international (PSi) conference 2024 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | We hosted the Performance Studies international (PSi) conference in June 2024, which marked a significant contribution to global performance research and academic inclusivity. With the theme 'Assemble', the conference attracted 656 participants from 190 cities worldwide, including 106 from non-high-income countries, emphasising a broad and diverse exchange of ideas. Central's partnerships with prominent institutions such as the London International Festival of Theatre [LIFT], the V&A Museum, the Africa Centre and University of London further underscored its commitment to fostering interdisciplinary research and cultural dialogue. In addition to organising the Performance Epistemologies of the Global Majority Summer School, Central funded a total of 15 bursaries - crucial in addressing barriers to participation, particularly for emerging scholars from marginalised backgrounds. The impact of these initiatives was reflected in the high level of engagement throughout the conference, with delegates sending 3,637 messages, uploading 188 photos, and starting 44 discussion topics on the Whova app, all of which significantly exceeded platform averages. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://psi29.com/ |
| Description | Public Lecture |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Selina Busby delivered a public lecture at University of Saskatchewan on Interdisciplinary Research focusing on the Kenya Rock Art Project. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | R&D - Time Keeps The Drummer |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | With Fevered Sleep, Yorkshire Dance and Leeds Art Gallery David Harradine led a 6-day creative research and development process which is part of the development of my next practice research project (and REF2029) submission, Time Keeps The Drummer. Initial ideas concerning a multi-source sound installation, live percussion, live-mixed electroacoustic music and improvised durational performance by diverse non-professional performers were all explored, leading to a 4-hour work in progress performance at Leeds Art Gallery on 13th July, as part of Yorkshire Dance's "Ageless" festival. 15 participants 3 external partner organisations 450 audience members for Leeds Arts Gallery presentation |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Teacher Training - IDEA Austria |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Nicola Abraham was funded to attend and present to train 60 teachers from around the world for IDEA Austria conference. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://blog.idea-austria.org/neue-aktivitaeten/drama-theater-in-education-regional-conference-2024-... |
| Description | Training Session for the Austrian Cultural Forum |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Applied Theatre Approaches to Engage Students in Immersive Learning Through Storytelling: In this 6 hour training teachers explored techniques in improvisation, storytelling and drama in education to demonstrate a range of exercises/games/activities that can be adopted and adapted for use in language learning classrooms. The exercises also look at group building to help build confidence and cohesion in students who may feel more anxious in class. The second part of the session demonstrated process drama/escape room activities that can be used to play with language use, engaging students in play, storytelling and using a fictional frame to encourage verbal/written exchange and excitement. It also looked at some digital tools that can be used in the classroom to support communication and build a sense of confidence through creative engagement. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| URL | https://www.acflondon.org/ |
| Description | Workshop - Creative Practitioner Development |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | World Kiosk is a community-focused public art installation designed to foster conversation, reflection, and connection through shared personal stories. The sound archive has been collected over nine years and represents 100s of people across the U.K. Delivered in partnership with cultural organisations across Greater London, Norfolk, Brighton, Derby, and beyond, it engaged over 2,800 public participants, trained more than 50 local hosts, and connected diverse communities through storytelling and the development of a major living archive of testimonies. Key outcomes include enhanced community engagement around sense of place, festivals better equipped to hold meaningful public conversations, and new cross-regional collaborations. Public feedback highlighted feelings of inclusion (86% strongly agreed), reflection on contemporary issues (85%), and recognition of the project's local significance (83%). The project was praised by media outlets, with Lyn Gardner from The Stage describing it as "both contemplative and galvanising," while Voice Magazine highlighted its capacity to help audiences better understand community through the sharing of "sincere" stories. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |