Sheridan’s Screen Industries Research and Training Centre (SIRT) continues to find new ways to bring digital technology to the world of live performances, and recently partnered with ProArteDanza and Occupied VR to further explore this realm.
The result was a projection mapping prototype that could add stunning projections and elevate a choreographed dance performance with an extra narrative element.
The technology hit the stage last week for the Toronto Premiere of The 9th!, a full-length imagining of Ludwig van Beethoven’s epic 9th Symphony choreographed by Pro Arte Danza’s Artistic Director Roberto Campanella, the award-winning choreographer of the Oscar-winning film The Shape of Water, and Artistic Associate Robert Glumbek.
The 9th! brings a bracingly 21st-century perspective to Beethoven’s nearly 200-year-old composition, and Campanella and Glumbek’s propulsive and inspired choreography showcases an impetuous and pulsingly physical athleticism to bear on this towering and totemic work.
Striking visual elements, including stunning projections created by the SIRT team and lighting design by Arun Srinivasan, make this ambitious and physical production undeniably modern.
The award-winning choreographer of the Oscar-winning film The Shape of Water, Campanella and four-time Dora Mavor Moore nominee Glumbek will present The 9th! with their company dancers, Taylor Bojanowski, Ryan Lee, Sasha Ludavicius, Daniel McArthur, Victoria Mehaffey, Connor Mitton, Jake Poloz, and Kelly Shaw.
