"Huang Yi & KUKA,” a human-robot duet that catapulted Taiwanese choreographer Huang Yi (黃翊) into international fame, will be staged at the 2019 Hong Kong Arts Festival on March 1 and 2 as part of the festival's Asia Pacific Dance Platform.
Huang, 35, is a collaborating choreographer with Cloud Gate 2 and on the "25 to Watch” list compiled by Dance Magazine. He has been driven by a life-long interest in the relationship between mankind and technology, creating such mechanical performances as an automated violin recital.
In "Huang Yi & KUKA," the choreographer explores the role of artificial intelligence in our present and future lives, particularly whether it is really possible to have meaningful interactions with machines.
"Dancing face to face with a robot is like looking at my own face in a mirror," stated Huang, who has longed for an automated companion since childhood. "I think I have found the key to spin human emotions into robots."
KUKA, an eight-foot-tall industrial robot of the eponymous German automation brand, is a labor of love. Huang spends over ten hours programming just one minute of robotic movement.
The resulting one-hour performance encompasses a series of vignettes between live dancers and their mechanical counterpart. Harmoniously weaving together the art of dance and the science of mechanical engineering, "Huang Yi & KUKA" is a poetic work that flawlessly intertwines modern dance with the realm of robotics.
More information on the up-and-coming choreographer can be found here.
HUANG YI & KUKA