DanceUnisoner: A Parametric, Visual, and Interactive Simulation Interface for Choreographic Composition of Group Dance

Abstract

Composing choreography is challenging because it involves numerous iterative refinements. According to our video analysis and interviews, choreographers typically need to imagine dancers' movements to revise drafts on paper since testing new movements and formations with actual dancers takes time. To address this difficulty, we present an interactive group-dance simulation interface, DanceUnisoner, that assists choreographers in composing a group dance in a simulated environment. With DanceUnisoner, choreographers can arrange excerpts from solo-dance videos of dancers throughout a three-dimensional space. They can adjust various parameters related to the dancers in real time, such as each dancer's position and size and each movement's timing. To evaluate the effectiveness of the system's parametric, visual, and interactive interface, we asked seven choreographers to use it and compose group dances. Our observations, interviews, and quantitative analysis revealed their successful usage in iterative refinements and visual checking of choreography, providing insights to facilitate further computational creativity support for choreographers.