MediaArtTutorials

Project 2 - Live Storytelling Performance

Group Project (4-5 students)

Examples (Photo-Documentation of Performances) by previous students.

Overview

Project 2 is a collective, performance-based project that explores storytelling through live sound, live visuals, light, space, and embodied presence.

Working in groups, students will develop a performative work presented in a public concert format. The project emphasizes collaboration, rehearsal, technical coordination, and responsiveness to space and audience, rather than pre-rendered or fixed media.

The shared thematic focus for this project is Space.
Students are invited to reflect on space as a concept and experience—such as physical space, architectural space, the body as space, cultural or social space, imagined space, or space as relation and movement—and to explore how these ideas can be expressed through live performance.

A key constraint of this project is that both sound and visuals must be generated live, using analogue or physical processes mediated through cameras, microphones, and simple digital mixing tools.

Index

Live Visuals — Technical Framework

All visual elements in Project 2 must be produced live during the performance.

Visuals will be generated switch between:

A light table with a live camera feed

Physical materials placed, moved, layered, or manipulated on the light table (e.g. paper, transparencies, drawings, found objects, textures)
A TV on the floor, using a separate live camera feed.

Visual storytelling must rely on improvisation, material exploration, and live manipulation.

Live Sound — Technical Framework

There must be a live spoken word element in the performance.

Sound improvisation must be produced live using any of the following elements:

Musical instruments
Old toys or mechanical objects
Found objects and physical materials
Cassette players or other analogue playback devices
Voice-related (whispers, gutural sounds, breathings)

Sound will be captured using microphones.

Audio will be mixed live and should respond to:

the visuals
the performers
the space
the unfolding structure of the performance

Pre-recorded soundtracks or fixed compositions are not permitted,
unless they are played and actively altered live through cassette players or other analogue playback devices.
Sound should be treated as a performative and responsive element, not background.

Notes

Project 2 prioritizes liveness, material exploration, and collective coordination.
All groups must work within the shared technical framework provided.
Detailed technical instructions, schedules, and rehearsal logistics are available above in the Index section.
This project follows the course’s maintenance-based grading system, with expectations outlined in each activity section.

Creative Production & Event Support (Required)

The Open Performance is a collective production, and all students are expected to contribute beyond their individual group performance.

This component emphasizes:

professionalism
collaboration
care for shared resources
respect for collective labor

Production Roles

Each student will:

be assigned (or volunteer for) a specific production role.
work collaboratively with peers and the instructor
complete their responsibilities reliably and on time

For this activity, production roles include:

Design & Visual Materials
(posters, signage, digital assets)
Communications / Text Editing
Technical Preparation
Transportation
Setup & Cleanup
Concert Presenter
(introducing the event and/or individual performances)

One student will be invited by the instructor to act as the Student Coordinator, helping manage communication, scheduling, and workflow across roles.

A sign-up spreadsheet for production roles will be available on Avenue to Learn early in the term.