Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0009-0001-4054-6900

Date of Award

Summer 8-20-2026

Document Type

Thesis (Master's)

Department or Program

Computer Science

First Advisor

Tim Tregubov

Second Advisor

Kate Salesin

Third Advisor

John Bell

Abstract

This thesis examines how digital presence, the sense that a digital performer is socially and performatively "there," is designed and tested in live hybrid performance. Drawing on four practice-based projects (Vicarious, Voltage, Vicarious: Encore Edition, and SUPER BLOOM), the first phase identifies a recurring but empirically untested claim: that digital presence depends on interactivity and co-presence with live performers, though these factors were always entangled in practice.

The second phase tests this claim directly. A new mini-performance, featuring the first fully AI-driven digital character in this line of work, was produced for controlled comparison. Using a 3 (intro type: AI-driven, human-hosted, or none) × 2 (backup dancers: present or absent) design, 243 adult participants were randomly assigned to view one of six video conditions and rated their perceptions of the digital performer. An interactive intro significantly increased perceived presence over no intro. The AI-driven intro also outperformed the human-hosted intro, supporting the claim that presence depends on the digital performer itself demonstrating responsiveness. Dancers produced no effect, and the predicted interaction was not confirmed. Exploratory analyses found that participants' beliefs about the performer's authenticity and responsiveness predicted presence more strongly than assigned condition itself.

Together, the two phases offer partial confirmation of the field's central intuition. The thesis concludes with a qualified relational model, practical design principles, and a methodological template for future research.

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