Everything and everyone has a digital twin brother or sister. Think of computer simulations for large structures, or virtual prototypes for new cars. But you too have one - in the form of all the data collected about you. Often, as humans, we think we have complete control over these digital copies. But is that really the case? Who ultimately influences whom?
In a fascinating mix of dance and technology, Digital Twin offers us a glimpse into this intangible twin world. In this new production, choreographers David Middendorp and Wubkje Kuindersma investigate the in-between space and interaction between the physical world and the digital domain. How do they relate and interact? Dancing with a twin version of yourself or with someone who is no longer physically there: Digital Twin proves that it can be done!
Living on in digital form
David Middendorp goes one step further in Missing by taking us into the near future. In this moving work, a dancer enters into a duet with someone who is no longer physically there, but whose digital version lives on in another world. The choreography shows us what it would be like if we could leave a digital copy of ourselves for our loved one(s). In Frequency 3 (a third version of an earlier choreography), Middendorp takes yet another completely different path, and we dive with him into the world of numbers. The dancers in the piece make the mathematics hidden behind digital worlds visible, as it were, with danced floor drawings of "digital sand" that reacts to vibrations (so-called Chladni patterns). Can we as humans change these formulas and frequencies or will chaos ensue?
“Dancing with your digital twin brother or sister? It's possible!”
Dancing drones
The final piece in Digital Twin is Middendorp's acclaimed Airman, but in a new version entitled Airman 2.0. The choreography ties in seamlessly with the "digital twin" theme, because the twelve drones Middendorp uses in this new version can only "dance" because there is a digital twin version of each drone with which to do the calculations to make them fly. The little machines often seem to lead a life of their own, which is not only spectacular, but in a way often moving.
Live or virtual
Digital Twin can be seen not only live in Amare's auditorium, but at the same time at another location in the theater through VR glasses. This means that two groups of audiences experience the performance in very different ways. For example, the "live" group experiences Middendorp's Missing from the perspective of the woman, while the VR viewers slip into the skin of the virtual man. The two audience groups themselves also play a role as "the other audience," the two groups interact, as it were, reinforcing each other and thus becoming more aware of the exciting dynamic between the virtual and analog world.
