A Constructed Response: Designing and Choreographing Robot Arm Movements in Collaborative Dance Improvisation

Abstract: Dancers often prototype movements themselves or with each other during improvisation and choreography. How are these interactions altered when physically manipulable technologies are introduced into the creative process? To understand how dancers design and improvise movements while working with instruments capable of non-humanoid movements, we engaged dancers in workshops to co-create movements with a robot arm in one-human-to-one-robot and three-human-to-one-robot settings. We found that dancers produced more fluid movements in one-to-one scenarios, experiencing a stronger sense of connection and presence with the robot as a co-dancer. In three-to-one scenarios, the dancers divided their attention between the human dancers and the robot, resulting in increased perceived use of space and more stop-and-go movements, perceiving the robot as part of the stage background. This work highlights how technologies can drive creativity in movement artists adapting to new ways of working with physical instruments, contributing design insights supporting artistic collaborations with non-humanoid agents.