13, 14 & 15 MAY 2025
INTRODUCTION
Azkuna Zentroa has organized the Peripheries of Performing Arts & New Technologies symposium within the framework of ACuTe. Culture Testbeds for Performing Arts and New Technology, a European innovation project supported by Creative Europe Programme and focused on the production of the performing arts through technologies.
Answers to questions such as “what?” and “how?” regarding this project can be found at Peripheries of Performing Arts & New Technologies, aimed at professionals within the artistic sector. A space for gatherings where artists, researchers, playwrights, technologists, and thinkers from a range of different cultures share knowledge and experiences regarding contemporary stage creation and emerging technologies from varied and techno-diverse perspectives. A symposium where all these processes were merged with dance, theatre, and performance.
To this end, a proposal was designed for 2.5 days with different dynamic formats such as workshops, panels, presentations, exhibitions, conferences, and visits to other cultural centres. The topics addressed were interdisciplinary and current, with a focus on future trends: diversity, accessibility, digital audiences, and experimental productions.
We are pleased to inform you that we invited local and international speakers who are experts in each subject. Regarding gender representation, the organization sought to achieve equity and reflect today’s society, with 46% male, 52% female, and 2% nonbinary.
The programme includes the performance of experimental stage productions and artistic installations open to the public. From these we may highlight LĀTTICE, the performative dance piece by Ziomara Hormaetxe, produced at Azkuna within the framework of this European project, inspired by the principles of quantum physics.
Resume video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13-ZGtsrewS9EnbWjJc9TjNg2cBIlel0X/view
PROGRAMME
TUESDAY, 13 MAY
3:30 - 7:30 P.M.
Design thinking workshop by Saxion University of Applied Sciences
· Herman Paassen. Researcher at Saxion University of Applied Sciences
· Hester van der Ent. Professor at Saxion University of Applied Sciences
BASTIDA HALL (Limited capacity)
WEDNESDAY, 14 MAY
9:15 A.M.
Registration BASTIDA HALL
9:45 A.M.
Opening Conference: Visions of the performing arts of the future
· Gonzalo Olabarria. Councilor for Culture and Governance of the Bilbao City Council
· Christl Baur. Head of the Ars Electronica Festival
BASTIDA HALL
10:30 A.M.
ACuTe Talk Session 4: City Game Nova Gorica
· Carla Meller. International Collaborations at Academy for Theatre and Digitality (moderator)
· Marko Bratuš. Artistic director
SNG Nova Gorica
· Markus Schubert. Technologist and founder of Nebelflucht
· Herman Paassen. Researcher at Saxion University of Applied Sciences
· Hester Van der Ent. Professor at Saxion University of Applied Sciences
BASTIDA HALL
11:30 A.M. Coffee break
12:00 P.M.
Showcase open lab: CUBUS and other artifacts
· Andrés Beladiez Stage director
IPARRAGUIRRE HALL (Limited capacity)
3:00 P.M. ONLY FOR ACUTe MEMBERS Guided tour of the Arriaga Theatre with the production team
TEATRO ARRIAGA
4:00 P.M. ONLY FOR ACUTe MEMBERS Guided tour of the exhibition in situ: Refik Anadol with curator Lekha Hileman
GUGGENHEIM BILBAO MUSEUM
5:30 P.M.
Panel 1: Techno-Diversity
· Marta Monfort. Member of the Basque Theatre Convention)
· Marcos Pereira. Multidisciplinary artist (online)
· Amaia Vicente. Artist and researcher
· Inés Enciso. Inclusion and Accessibility advisor at Centro Dramático Nacional
BASTIDA HALL
8:00 P.M. Vertical performance: Atxine. Janire Etxabe
ATRIUM OF CULTURES
THURSDAY, 15 MAY
9:15 A.M. ONLY FOR ACUTe MEMBERS
ACuTe Consortium Meeting
BASTIDA HALL
10:15 A.M. ONLY FOR ACUTe MEMBERS
Presentation: PREMIERE project
· Pablo Palacio. Composer and cofounder of Instituto Stocos (online)
BASTIDA HALL
11:30 A.M. ONLY FOR ACUTe MEMBERS Workshop: Creating Scenic Imaginaries with Artificial Intelligence
· Laura MM. Multidisciplinary artist
IPARRAGUIRRE HALL
3:30 P.M.
Panel 2: Post-Digital audience
· Vero Róza Risnovska. Project Manager. European Theatre Convention
· Pepe Zapata. Expert in cultural audiences
· Christy Romer. Communication manager at European Theatre Convention
BASTIDA HALL
4:30 P.M.
Experimenting with performances and installations
· WUNDERLAND. Presentation and experimentation by the artistic director
MEDIATEKA BBK
· Reconstituirea. Presented by Ciprian Făcăeru, head of Digital Research at Augmented Space Agency, and George Albert Costea,
actor/performer and project manager at Teatrul Național Marin Sorescu Craiova
FERNÁNDEZ DEL CAMPO HALL
· Held in Human II: Rose in Your Brain Online presentation
BASTIDA HALL
· Prosessen Mot Menneska Presented by Det Norske Teatret dramaturg Anders Hasmo and stage director Peer Arne Perez Øian BASTIDA HALL
· Culture Testbeds for Performing Arts and New Technology from Bilbao. Presentation by Jaime de los Ríos, new media artist
BASTIDA HALL
6:00 P.M.
Conference-Performance:
· Claudix Vanesix. Artist
BASTIDA HALL
7:00 P.M.
Movement-based performance: LĀTTICE. Ziomara Hormaetxe. Premiere. Production by Azkuna Zentroa within the framework of the ACuTe project
AUDITORIUM
8:00 P.M.
Vertical performance: Atxine. Janire Etxabe
ATRIUM OF CULTURES
· All sessions will be in English.
· All sessions held at Bastida Hall include simultaneous interpreting into Basque and Spanish.
TUESDAY 13.05
3:30 P.M. - 7:30 P.M.
Design thinking workshop by Saxion
University of Applied Sciences
Design thinking workshop
This workshop provides participants the opportunity to apply some of the most used tools of the Design Thinking toolkit created as part of the ACuTe project. They will work in guided teams on the following statement: What concept, making use of new technologies in Stage Design, Audience Engagement or New Dramaturgies can stimulate Gen Z to visit a theatre performance?
BASTIDA HALL
Herman Paassen
Researcher · Saxion University of Applied Sciences
Herman is a senior lecturer in interactive media at Saxion University of Applied Sciences in Enschede, the Netherlands. He graduated from the Minerva Art Academy in Groningen, specializing in graphic design, illustration, and computer animation. Initially, he worked as a 3D designer and animator for film and television productions, and he has extensive experience in interactive media as an interaction and graphical user interface designer.
Hester van der Ent
Professor · Saxion University of Applied Sciences
Hester van der Ent is a teacher at the course Creative Media and Game Technologies and researcher at the XR lab of Saxion University of Applied Sciences. An expert in fields such as design thinking, consumer behaviour, and user experience, she is project leader within Saxion for participation in ACuTe, as well as co-designer of the ACuTe’s Design Thinking Toolkit and workshops.
Opening Conference: Visions of the performing arts of the future
The performing arts find themselves at a turning point where new technologies are generating as many concerns as opportunities for reaching new audiences. The aim is not to replace the theatre, dance, or opera, but rather to explore how innovation can strengthen the connection to society.
As live art, the sense of the present, the body, and story-telling are and will continue to be fundamental. This inaugural conference will be tackling both their human, in-person, ephemeral nature, and the impact of technology on the creative process and the stage experience.
Christl Baur
Head of the Ars Electronica Festival
Christl Baur is the Head of the Ars Electronica Festival, where she leads as an interdisciplinary researcher specializing in the convergence of art and science. Baur’s expertise extends to various fields, including video art, new media technologies, computer art, biotechnology, and interactive art, taking the form of curating exhibitions and performances, teaching, academic writing, and public speaking.
WEDNESDAY 14.05
ACuTe Talk Session 4: City Game Nova Gorica
Go!Cross
The conurbation of Nova Gorica (Slovenia) and Gorizia (Italy) is the adventure space for this mobile app created to unite and explore both of these cross-border cities through riddles, challenges, and treasure hunts.
The combination of virtual gaming and real exploration make it a unique experience. Go!Cross encourages the inhabitants of both cities to discover hidden corners that might otherwise go unnoticed in their daily lives.
Herman Paassen
Researcher · Saxion University of Applied Sciences
Info: p. 9
Hester van der Ent
Professor · Saxion University of Applied Sciences
Info: p. 9
Carla Meller
International Collaborations. Academy for Theatre and Digitality
With a background in political sciences and cultural and theatre management, Carla Meller has worked for ten seasons in various positions at the Residenztheater, Munich. Since 2023 she has been part of the team at the Academy for Theatre and Digitality. In this role, she brings her extensive experience in cultural management to network the Academy in the global theater landscape and promote innovative, forward-looking projects.
Marko Bratuš
Artistic director. SNG Nova Gorica
With a background in dramaturgy and radio directing, Marko Bratuš works as a theatre and film director, dramaturge, musician, script consultant and screenwriter for television, film, radio and theatre. From 2016 he works as the artistic director of Slovenian National Theatre of Nova Gorica, which is a member of the European Theatre Convention Network, where he served as a board member between 2019-2023.
Markus Schubert
Technologist and founder of Nebelflucht
Markus Schubert is a creative technologist and game designer working at the intersection of technology and the performing arts. His artistic focus lies in designing interactive performances, participatory formats, and immersive installations. He collaborates with theatre makers, artists, and interdisciplinary teams to create playful, technology-driven experiences that invite audiences to engage actively. He is the founder and managing director of Nebelflucht GmbH.
Showcase open lab: CUBUS and other artifacts
Born from a process of research into the possibilities that emerging technologies offer in a dramaturgical context, Cubus is an interactive multimedia installation, a scenic toy aimed at family audiences. Conceived as a space-time portal, this technical-dramatic show is propelled by questions around the possibility to build a dramaturgical framework that may allow spectators to choose and shape what they are watching.
Andrés Beladiez
Stage director & playwright
Andrés Beladiez incorporates new technologies in multi-disciplinary, non-conventional stage narratives with a large social and political content. He has a passion for site-specific, interactive stage installations, and non-conventional formats. Moreover, he has carried out numerous artistic residencies and exhibited his work in a wide variety of spaces worldwide.
Panel 1: Techno-Diversity
The appearance of digital technologies in performing arts has opened up unknown horizons for creation, yet also poses crucial challenges regarding diversity, inclusion and representation. This panel explores how new technologies can enrich techno-diversity, giving voice and space to narratives and artistic practices which have traditionally remained on the sidelines. The aim is to identify practical ethical paths so that the digital revolution can effectively contribute to a more plural, democratic and technologically diverse artistic scene.
Marta Monfort
Monfort. Member of the Basque Theatre Network
She graduated in Information Science & Audiovisual Communication (Complutense University, Madrid) and completed a Postgraduate Master’s degree in Film & Dramatic Arts Direction (University of California, Los Angeles UCLA). She has been working at the VitoriaGasteiz City Council regarding cultural activities since 1993. Furthermore, she is the artistic manager of the Vitoria International Theatre Festival, a member of the Spanish Network of Publicly Owned Theatres, Auditoriums, Circuits and Festivals, and likewise a member of the 2025 Ornitorrinco Circuit mediation project artistic commissions.
Inés Enciso
Inclusion and Accessibility advisor at National Dramatic Centre
She was the creator and co-director of the Una mirada diferente Festival at the National Dramatic Centre (2015 Full Inclusion Award and Special Award from the Actors and Actresses Union Award), and the casting director and acting coach for Javier Fesser’s film Campeones. In addition, she is a member of the Inclusion Commission of the Spanish Network of Publicly Owned Theatres, Auditoriums, Circuits and Festivals, and one of the creators of the “Yo Cuento” theatrical laboratory project, which works with children suffering from neurological diseases via the Performing Arts.
Marcos Pereira
Actor, dancer and stage manager
Graduated in Gestural Performance from Royal Higher College of Performing Arts (RESAD) in Madrid, he completed his training with dance studies at Mariemma Conservatory (RCDPM).
Throughout his career he has aimed to cover and stage not only acting techniques but also the blend that can emerge from dance, performance, visual dramaturgies, and sign language.
Amaia Vicente
Artist & Researcher
She works at the intersection of art, science, technology and society, using performance as a means to talk about cyborg body fiction derived from the use of technology as a corporal expansion via various devices annexed to the body. Her work has been exhibited at various international festivals as well as numerous galleries and museums.
PREMIERE project
The PREMIERE project aims to modernise performing arts by developing digital tools to support the full lifecycle of a performing art artifact, from its rehearsal and production to its consumption and preservation. Powered by IA, XR and 3D technologies, the project seeks to enhance creative processes as much as the accessibility and understanding of the pieces.
Pablo Palacio
Composer
His work, closely connected to the performing arts and with an international reach, focuses on the perceptive connections between the sound images that emerge in the course of a composition. In addition to his work as an artist in residence and participant in seminars and conferences, he is currently designing interactive virtual instruments for people with disabilities together with the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar.
BASTIDA HALL
THURSDAY 15.05
11:30 A.M.
IPARRAGUIRRE HALL
Workshop Creating Scenic Imaginaries with Artificial Intelligence
Creating Scenic Imaginaries with Artificial Intelligence is conceived as a space for exploration and creative production with artificial intelligence tools, focused on the creation of content linked to the performing arts.
Laura MM
Multidisciplinary artist
Laura MM is a multidisciplinary artist who integrates technology, art, and design. She is currently a PhD student in Contemporary Art, focusing on Artificial Intelligence, and a lecturer at Universidad Euneiz (Vitoria-Gasteiz). Her most recent work, the installation C. El punto justo del conflicto cognitivo, explores the interaction between artificial intelligence and the audience. On the day it was presented it recorded over 15,000 interactions. ONLY FOR ACUTe MEMBERS
Panel 2:
Post-Digital audience
The audience is no longer just in their seats, they are everywhere. The stage is no longer a sacred place and the screen is no longer a separate space. Audiences have mutated: they swipe, send, react, co-create. In this post-digital reality, the theatre must break out of its confines and start staging for the in-between: re-imagining presence, connection, and meaning beyond stage and screen.
Vero Róza Risnovska
Project Manager. European Theatre Convention
Vero Róza Risnovska (she/they) is a project manager at European Theatre Convention (ETC) and a theatre maker. She founded the interdisciplinary art platform and festival Pankumenta in Berlin, and showed work at various European festivals and institutions, including Ars Electronica, where she received an Honorary Mention in the Campus Award category. She has worked and collaborated with artistic and theatre collectives internationally.
Pepe Zapata
Expert
in cultural audiences
Pepe Zapata is the director of Corporate Relations at Grupo Focus and Commissioner of the International Congress of Theatre Spectators.
In addition to holding leadership positions in various cultural institutions, he is an associate professor at the University of Barcelona, a regular speaker and an educator in the fields of culture, communication, and cultural marketing.
Christy Romer
Communication Manager at European Theatre Convention
Christy Romer is Communication Manager at the European Theatre Convention, the largest network of publicly funded theatres in Europe. In this role, he coordinates the network’s communication strategy and press campaigns across the continent, with a particular focus on projects related to diversity, sustainability and digital development. As a cultural journalist, he has written for national publications in the UK, Spain and the US.
Experimenting with performances and installations
WUNDERLAND
A VR film by Kurdwin Ayub Wunderland is an experimental VR 360º film following a young family’s not always peaceful everyday life. While wearing VR glasses and 3D sound headphones, the audience can experience how “mum” (Maresi Riegner) and “dad” (Valentin Postlmayr) take care of their child from the child’s own perspective.
MEDIATEKA BBK
Reconstituirea
“Marin Sorescu” National Theatre of Craiova
FERNÁNDEZ DEL CAMPO HALL
The Reconstituirea VR installation is a transmedia component of the theatre production directed by Catinca Drăgănescu, with scenography by Ciprian Făcăeru, produced at “Marin Sorescu” National Theatre of Craiova.
The original theatre production recycles vintage technologies—CRT televisions, VHS cameras—with emerging ones—augmented and virtual reality—, creating a mediaturgical structure where media is not just a design layer but a dramaturgical agent. Continuing this hybrid approach, the VR installation becomes a dynamic space that engages its participant audience through a gamified, interactive and immersive experience guided by atemporal narrative loops developed in a theatre context.
Held in Human II: Rose in Your Brain
BASTIDA HALL
Liis Vares and Taavet Jansen, authors of Held in Human II: Rose in Your Brain, share the creative process behind this performance combining physical reading with a dance routine of thoughts that can be experienced within one’s own body using mixed-reality glasses.
Prosessen Mot Menneska
Anders Hasmo—a playwright – and Peer Arne Perez Øian—a stage director for Det Norske Teatret – present Prosessen Mot Menneska (The Process against Mankind), an innovative work that recreates a future near at hand in which AI has taken over the world, offering humans salvation in the form of existence in a digital paradise located in the cloud. The trial against humans takes the form of an interactive performance in which the audience are in the dock together with the actors, and have the opportunity to ask questions or defend themselves.
© Taavet Jansen
BASTIDA HALL
Culture Testbeds
for Performing Arts and New Technology from Bilbao
BASTIDA HALL
Creation is always an adventure that opens up non-existent paths, new tools, new kits, and a complex system of possibilities that we have to face up to in order to take advantage of the uncertainty. In this presentation, Jaime de los Ríos invites us to understand and discuss the combination of technique, aesthetics and dance at the openLab, which has been worked on at Azkuna Zentroa for over two years. A pathway of tests, experimentation, and above all passion that combines the latest visual possibilities such as holograms, lasers, and quantum algorithms with a large-scale project involving dancers, choreographers, and newmedia artists.
Jaime de los Ríos
Artist, curator
He is an artist, curator, and technical director of the New Art Foundation and an expert in the hybridization of art, science, and technology. As a curator he has realized projects such as Plastic Planet in association with Ars Electronica; Open Codes in association with the ZKMCenter for Art and Media Karlsruhe at Azkuna Zentroa; Hypeconectadxs at Tabakalera (San Sebastian); or Hiperobjetos at the Madrid Círculo de Bellas Artes. As an artist he focuses on the biology of migratory movements, data flows, Big Data, and Collective Intelligences.
Claudix Vanesix.
Conference-Performance
Claudix Vanesix is a prize-winning performance, XR and AI artist whose works defy the narrative of technological inevitability by mixing new technologies with ancestral traditions.
Claudix’s work, such as their performance Nuevos Medios NFTs: Tokens No Fornicables and their first VR film, Permiso para Bailar (Denegado), have been exhibited at galleries and festivals worldwide.
Claudix Vanesix Artist
THURSDAY
Movement-based performance: LĀTTICE. Ziomara Hormaetxe
Production by Azkuna Zentroa within the framework of the ACuTe project
Basque choreographer Ziomara Hormaetxe presents LĀTTICE, a movement-based performance piece produced by Azkuna Zentroa as part of the European project ACuTe. Culture Testbeds for Performing Arts and New Technology, in which the Centre is a strategic partner, with support from the European Commission’s Creative Europe programme.
LĀTTICE draws from the principles of quantum physics to transcend conventional reality.
In a constant dialogue between body and technology, this work explores gravity as an omnipresent force that passes through the body in multiple layers: from the physical to the quantum, shaping the ways in which we experience space and movement.
The work proposes a journey through virtual spaces, multiverses, where each layer of reality opens up new possibilities of existence and connection, expanding the ways in which contemporary narratives of collaboration transform our reality.
AUDIENCE AND DISSEMINATION
This programme was specifically aimed at a professional audience, as the aim was to disseminate new trends within the professional sector at a local level, but also to promote the exchange of knowledge between different disciplines and backgrounds in order to achieve a richer and more diverse experience.
The programme was disseminated not only to local cultural centres, but also to national and international ones, such as theatre networks, cultural managers, performing arts companies and universities. Although the initial target was 50 people, we are pleased to report that we far exceeded this figure, reaching 95 attendees on 13, 14 and 15 May 2025 at Azkuna Zentroa. context.
The symposium reached approximately 500 professionals linked to the performing arts and new technologies. Press releases were sent out, several ad hoc newsletters were sent to professionals, the event was included in the agendas of specialised media, and theatre networks were contacted to publicise the event. Several posts were also made on social media, and digital contents were created for dissemination.
To facilitate access to the symposium and its content, admission was free upon registration.
We were able to profile the audience based on their age, origin, gender, and sector.
In terms of audience origin:
• 53% were Spanish, of whom 37% were from the Bilbao region (Basque Country), and 15% were from other regions, such as Valencia, Madrid, Barcelona, Galicia, Castile and León, Navarre, and Cantabria.
• 47% were international, hailing from 17 countries including Greece, the Netherlands, Germany, Romania, Portugal, Italy, Bulgaria, Austria, Finland, Norway, Serbia, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Argentina and Peru. The participation of Ukraine should also be noted.
Participants list: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DwCAwCs0ya_fzj4dLf5u876Y_wAh7O-H/
In terms of gender, a certain balance was maintained, with the presence of non-binary people still evident in the sample.
• Women: 48%
• Men: 50%
• Non-binary: 2%
The average age of attendees reflects a sector undergoing generational change, with a predominance of adults aged between 35 and 50.
We also felt it was important to identify the professional sector of attendees, differentiating between the following:
• Company: 5%
• University: 13%
• Cultural Centres: 33%
• Cultural manager: 17%
• Artists: 28%
• Others: 3%
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