By Chelsea Anne Barlaan on June 24, 2026
In 2020, as the world entered unfamiliar territory, so did the dance industry. The pandemic changed the way artists, dancers, and audiences could gather for live performances, making physical connection difficult at a time when creative expression was still very necessary. Virtual and hybrid spaces became a necessity, introducing how technology could help preserve the feeling of presence, movement, and shared experience.
Developed as part of Art-A-Hack’s 2020 Special Edition, COVID-19 “DANCEDEMIC,” Ellen Pearlman’s “DANCEDEMIC” in a Pandemic: A New Networked Reality explored this question through a unique combination of dance, biometric sensing, sound, video, and real-time data. Rather than viewing technology as separate from the body, the project used EmotiBit to bring physiological signals into the creative process itself. Through this approach, DANCEDEMIC showed how movement, emotion, and biometric data could work together to create a new kind of performance environment.
A Performance Built Through Distance
At the center of DANCEDEMIC was the challenge of creating connection during a time of separation. Dance is often associated with physical space, shared energy, and the relationship between performers and audiences. With the restrictions from lockdown, these traditional aspects were not possible, which prompted artists to rethink how performance could exist when people could not gather in the same room.
Thus, a networked performance system was born. By connecting dance, biometric data, live video, sound, and several creative software platforms, the project built an interactive performance environment across distance. Real-time biometric signals from the dancers were woven into the performance, adding another layer of connection between the body, technology, and audience.
From Signals to Storytelling
EmotiBit played an important role in bringing the dancers’ internal responses into DANCEDEMIC. As the performers moved, EmotiBit recorded signals such as heart rate, breath, blood oxygen, movement, emotional response, temperature, and orientation. These signals were streamed using OSC (Open Sound Control) and synchronized with video. By connecting EmotiBit with creative tools such as Ableton Live, TouchDesigner, and OBS, the project created a system where biometric data could move between the body, software, sound, and visuals.
Instead of simply documenting the visual component of dance, EmotiBit helped translate what was happening inside the body into something that could be explored creatively and scientifically. As such, every performance involves more than what is visible to the human eye. Beneath the choreography are changes in breath, heart rate, exertion, orientation, temperature, and emotional response. With EmotiBit, some of these hidden processes became part of the visual and creative experience of the performance, adding to the narrative that dance can be considered a form of science as well. In this way, the project connects art and science without reducing one to the other.
Why DANCEDEMIC Still Matters Today
Although DANCEDEMIC was created during the height of the pandemic, the ideas behind the project are still relevant today. Virtual performances, livestreamed events, hybrid experiences, and interactive media have continued to shape how people engage with art. Even as in-person events have returned, artists and audiences are now more familiar with creating and experiencing art through digital and networked spaces.
The project also raises a broader question: how can technology help people feel more connected rather than more distant? In DANCEDEMIC, EmotiBit helped answer this by keeping the body at the center of the work. The technology did not replace the dancers or the emotional presence of performance but instead helped reveal parts of the experience that are usually invisible.
The use of several creative software platforms also made the project relevant beyond dance alone. By connecting biometric data to programs used in music, visuals, and live performance, the project demonstrated the usefulness of biosensing to artists who may not come from a science or engineering background. It also showed how artist-built systems and accessible creative tools can empower smaller organizations, independent artists, musicians, visual artists, performers, and creative technologists to experiment with new forms of interactive performance.
The Show Goes On
Looking back, DANCEDEMIC shows how EmotiBit can support artists and engineers across many disciplines. In this project, dance was used as a catalyst to encourage perseverance during a period of chaos and uncertainty. The data collected from EmotiBit was not just something to analyze after the fact. It became part of a living performance system that can still be explored in dance, science, and other creative fields today. DANCEDEMIC shows that when biometric sensing is used creatively, it can help transform movement, emotion, and human connection into a shared artistic experience.
Watch the full performance here.
Click here for more information about the creation of Art-A-Hack 2020.
This piece was informed by publicly available project materials documenting DANCEDEMIC and the following paper: Pearlman, E. (2022). “DANCEDEMIC” in a Pandemic: A New Networked Reality. Journal of Network Music and Arts, 4(1). https://commons.library.stonybrook.edu/jonma/vol4/iss1/5
Photo Reference: REFLEX_PRODUCTION. (2022, August 24). Girls dancing contemporary [Photograph]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/girls-dancing-contemporary-dancer-7405719/
Interested in learning more about how EmotiBit is currently being used in the arts? Check out our blog post on Patricia Alves-Oliveira’s Painted Heart Beats project!