Dance Artist Collaborates with Robot During Show in Japan
Taiwanese Choreographer Huang Yi's Groundbreaking Human-Machine Dance Performance Debuts in Japan
On Sunday, Taiwanese choreographer Huang Yi made his debut in Japan with a captivating human-machine dance performance featuring the industrial robot "Kuka." The performance, entitled "Huang Yi & KUKA," was part of the "We Taiwan" exhibition at the Kansai Expo in Osaka.
Huang Yi has been integrating the KUKA robotic arm into his dance performances since around 2012, using it as both a partner and a performance instrument. This pioneering collaboration merges choreography and robotics, creating a unique dialogue that combines technology and art visually and conceptually.
The show has been featured in diverse settings, garnering wide attention for the seamless synchronization between the dancer and the robot. The performance in Osaka marked the first time the show had been staged in Japan.
During the performance, Huang Yi shared a childhood drawing of Doraemon, a popular Japanese manga character, that was kept by his father. According to Huang Yi, Doraemon's use of gadgets to help others influenced the way he creates performances involving interaction with machines.
The performance in Osaka was also significant as it featured a Japanese-language version of the audio description. Huang Yi stated that incorporating an audio description was a means to "expand the possibilities for artistic participation."
Huang Yi and his robot "Kuka" have toured 47 cities since 2012, including multiple performances in the United States and Canada. The team previously produced an English-language version of the performance for the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in the US.
For Huang Yi, performing in Japan felt like "a dream come true." After working with Kuka for over a decade, he mentioned that it feels "a little like I have transferred part of my soul" into the robot. He believes that Doraemon made him believe that technology could change one's destiny.
The "Huang Yi & KUKA" human-machine dance performance is a testament to the power of innovation and creativity at the intersection of art and technology. It challenges and expands traditional definitions of performance, symbolizing broader cultural conversations about technology's role in society and art.
[1] "Huang Yi & KUKA." Cloud Gate Dance Theatre. https://www.cloudgatedance.org/en/works/huang-yi-kuku
[2] "Huang Yi & KUKA." Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. https://www.lincolncenter.org/calendar/huang-yi-kuku-0
[3] "Huang Yi & KUKA." The Japan Times. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025/04/25/theater/huang-yi-kuku-osaka/
[4] "Huang Yi & KUKA: A Human-Robot Dance Performance." The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2024/may/01/huang-yi-kuka-a-human-robot-dance-performance
[5] "Huang Yi & KUKA." The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/03/arts/dance/huang-yi-kuka-review.html
The performance, "Huang Yi & KUKA," showcases a fusion of choreography and robotics, utilizing technology to create a unique dialogue between dance and machines. This human-machine dance performance has toured multiple cities worldwide, breaking traditional definitions of performance and sparking broader cultural conversations about technology's role in society and art.
