THE VIRTUAL DANCE EXCHANGE PROJECT
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VDEP will continue an ongoing exchange to bring external unique dance companies to work with Pittsburgh dancers. VDEP also facilitates educational opportunities for dancers and performing artists to help boost knowledge of the advances of technology and how this can intersect with the arts.
This project is made possible by New Sun Rising and the Arts. Equity. Reimagined. Fund.
Special thanks:
Mill 19 & RIDC of Southwestern PA
Center for Civic Arts
The Borough of Wilkinsburg
This project is made possible by New Sun Rising and the Arts. Equity. Reimagined. Fund.
Special thanks:
Mill 19 & RIDC of Southwestern PA
Center for Civic Arts
The Borough of Wilkinsburg
PRESS: |
PROMO VIDEO: |
EVENTS:
ONLINE PERFORMANCE: FEATURING WORKS BY SHANA SIMMONS DANCE, CHRISALA BROWN, AND BIANCA JOHNSON + DANCERS
Tickets on sale:
September 24-November 20
Access anytime online after ticket registration through December 1
Experience new works by Shana Simmons, Chrisala Brown, and Bianca Johnson. Each piece was filmed in a different location in Pittsburgh that speaks to renewal, renovation, and honoring the past. Each work was filmed with 360-degree technology to create a immersive experience for the viewer.
For the true immersive experience (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) purchase your own VDEP cardboard headset to use with your phone and be able to move your head around as the performances unfold.
No headset? No problem! You will be able to use your phone, tablet or computer to manually scroll the scene. You can also hold your phone up and physically move it around to see the entire environment.
Tickets:
Online Experience (no headset): Pay-What-You-Will, suggested $15/person
1 Headset Virtual Experience: $25 donation, VDEP cardboard headset shipped directly to you to use with your phone
2 Headsets Virtual Experience: $40 donation, VDEP cardboard headsets shipped directly to you to use with your phone
Ticket sales end November 20, but you can access the performances through December 1!
Tickets on sale:
September 24-November 20
Access anytime online after ticket registration through December 1
Experience new works by Shana Simmons, Chrisala Brown, and Bianca Johnson. Each piece was filmed in a different location in Pittsburgh that speaks to renewal, renovation, and honoring the past. Each work was filmed with 360-degree technology to create a immersive experience for the viewer.
For the true immersive experience (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) purchase your own VDEP cardboard headset to use with your phone and be able to move your head around as the performances unfold.
No headset? No problem! You will be able to use your phone, tablet or computer to manually scroll the scene. You can also hold your phone up and physically move it around to see the entire environment.
Tickets:
Online Experience (no headset): Pay-What-You-Will, suggested $15/person
1 Headset Virtual Experience: $25 donation, VDEP cardboard headset shipped directly to you to use with your phone
2 Headsets Virtual Experience: $40 donation, VDEP cardboard headsets shipped directly to you to use with your phone
Ticket sales end November 20, but you can access the performances through December 1!
THE VDEP SYMPOSIUM: a series of dialogues between leaders in the arts, technology, and education
The Virtual Dance Exchange Project Talks Tech, Creativity, Equity, and Sustainability
This series is free and open to the public. Registration is required.
Dates:
Tuesdays- October 5, October 26, November 16, 7pm
Full List Of Panelists: Celeste Smith (Pgh Foundation), Randal Miller (Pgh Cultural Trust/Dance Council), Audrey Russo (Pgh Tech Council), Erin Perry (Legacy Arts, Pgh), Max Dennison(Digital Equity & Inclusion Manager, City of Pgh), Aileen Barry(National Dance Institute, NYC), Kendra Dennard/Vie Boheme(Former August Wilson Center Dance Ensemble, multi-media artist, Texas), Jaehee Cho(Orta Interactive, Pgh), Lauren Ruffin (Crux/Fractured Atlas, NYC), Kate Fisher (Safety Third Productions, LA), Lee Erdman (Immersive Experience Expert and Film, VR/XR Theatre Professional, Canada)
Tuesday, October 5, 7pm
Small Arts Futures in "Roboburgh" and Beyond
Speakers: Celeste Smith, Randal Miller, Erin Perry, Audrey Russo
With a growing tech company community here in Pittsburgh, how can these companies help expand the thriving arts community?
Talk #1 will focus on prominent arts and tech leaders in Pittsburgh discussing Pittsburgh's development, how arts and diverse culture helps makes cities thrive, and how tech companies play a role in this development. What does it take to build an artistic organization? Comparing other cities to Pittsburgh, what are we missing? What helps encourage a city's overall reputation and how can we elevate Pittsburgh?
The Virtual Dance Exchange Project Talks Tech, Creativity, Equity, and Sustainability
This series is free and open to the public. Registration is required.
Dates:
Tuesdays- October 5, October 26, November 16, 7pm
Full List Of Panelists: Celeste Smith (Pgh Foundation), Randal Miller (Pgh Cultural Trust/Dance Council), Audrey Russo (Pgh Tech Council), Erin Perry (Legacy Arts, Pgh), Max Dennison(Digital Equity & Inclusion Manager, City of Pgh), Aileen Barry(National Dance Institute, NYC), Kendra Dennard/Vie Boheme(Former August Wilson Center Dance Ensemble, multi-media artist, Texas), Jaehee Cho(Orta Interactive, Pgh), Lauren Ruffin (Crux/Fractured Atlas, NYC), Kate Fisher (Safety Third Productions, LA), Lee Erdman (Immersive Experience Expert and Film, VR/XR Theatre Professional, Canada)
Tuesday, October 5, 7pm
Small Arts Futures in "Roboburgh" and Beyond
Speakers: Celeste Smith, Randal Miller, Erin Perry, Audrey Russo
With a growing tech company community here in Pittsburgh, how can these companies help expand the thriving arts community?
Talk #1 will focus on prominent arts and tech leaders in Pittsburgh discussing Pittsburgh's development, how arts and diverse culture helps makes cities thrive, and how tech companies play a role in this development. What does it take to build an artistic organization? Comparing other cities to Pittsburgh, what are we missing? What helps encourage a city's overall reputation and how can we elevate Pittsburgh?
Tuesday, October 26, 7pm
Equity and Cultural Diversity in Dance Education
Speakers: Max Dennison, Aileen Barry, Kendra Dennard/Vie Boheme
How does educational development (in all stages of life) and exposure to the arts and technology play a role in our development as humans and societies? How does black arts education and accessibility affect the Cultural Institutions in Pittsburgh? How does educational institutions in other cities compare to Pittsburgh's and what are our needs? We will hear from working professionals that have danced in Pittsburgh and other places, educational leaders in Pittsburgh's community, and hear from NYC arts leader Aileen Barry to compare strengths and weaknesses.
Equity and Cultural Diversity in Dance Education
Speakers: Max Dennison, Aileen Barry, Kendra Dennard/Vie Boheme
How does educational development (in all stages of life) and exposure to the arts and technology play a role in our development as humans and societies? How does black arts education and accessibility affect the Cultural Institutions in Pittsburgh? How does educational institutions in other cities compare to Pittsburgh's and what are our needs? We will hear from working professionals that have danced in Pittsburgh and other places, educational leaders in Pittsburgh's community, and hear from NYC arts leader Aileen Barry to compare strengths and weaknesses.
Tuesday, November 16, 7pm
Tech Strategies for Small Performing Arts Companies: What Is Possible Now?
Speakers: Lee Erdman, Jaehee Cho, Lauren Ruffin, Kate Fisher
What is currently being done in VR and the arts? How does filming in 360-degrees differ from live performance? Is racial equity an issue in both the tech world and the arts world? Talk #3 will broaden awareness of how tech has influenced the dance scene up until this point, what can one expect when working with film and new technologies and discuss possible futures for arts performance and technology.
Tech Strategies for Small Performing Arts Companies: What Is Possible Now?
Speakers: Lee Erdman, Jaehee Cho, Lauren Ruffin, Kate Fisher
What is currently being done in VR and the arts? How does filming in 360-degrees differ from live performance? Is racial equity an issue in both the tech world and the arts world? Talk #3 will broaden awareness of how tech has influenced the dance scene up until this point, what can one expect when working with film and new technologies and discuss possible futures for arts performance and technology.
MILL 19: BIANCA JOHNSON + DANCERS
WILKINSBURG MURAL: CHRISALA BROWN
CENTER FOR CIVIC ARTS: SHANA SIMMONS DANCE
YEAR ONE:
Shana Simmons Dance (SSD) in collaboration with Chrisala Brown, XRconnectED (Karen Alexander) and Bianca Johnson & Dancers (BJ&D), is proud to announce a $100,000 award from the Arts | Equity | Reimagined Fund for The Virtual Dance Exchange Project (VDEP), a collective designed to explore race and age diversity in dance, the impact of COVID-19 on the dance world, and differences between dance community structures in New York City and Pittsburgh.
VDEP will develop original choreography filmed in 360-degree video format putting the viewer at the center of the performance, giving them agency to look around at the environment at will, creating a completely immersive dance experience filmed by Jaehee Cho. This virtual performance will premiere online in the Fall of 2021 along with a series of educational online group discussions addressing systemic racism and how it continues to sustain inequities in the arts community.
VDEP will develop original choreography filmed in 360-degree video format putting the viewer at the center of the performance, giving them agency to look around at the environment at will, creating a completely immersive dance experience filmed by Jaehee Cho. This virtual performance will premiere online in the Fall of 2021 along with a series of educational online group discussions addressing systemic racism and how it continues to sustain inequities in the arts community.