Human-Robot Artistic Co-Creation: a Study in Improvised Robot Dance

Joint artistic performance, like music, dance or acting, provides an excellent domain to observe the mechanisms of human-human collaboration. In this paper, we use this domain to study human-robot collaboration and co-creation. We propose a general model in which an AI system mediates the interaction between a human performer and a robotic performer. We then instantiate this model in a case study, implemented using fuzzy logic techniques, in which a human pianist performs jazz improvisations, and a robot dancer performs classical dancing patterns in harmony with the artistic moods expressed by the human. The resulting system has been evaluated in an extensive user study, and successfully demonstrated in public live performances.