Re-Presenting Immersive Theater Through Mobile XR Display: A Case Study of Circuit Garden

In immersive theater, where audience behavior is part of the performance, vividly recreating the original experience through an immersive display remains a significant research challenge. In this paper, we present Circuit Garden XR (CGXR), a mobile application that recreates the immersive theater experience of Circuit Garden by combining 360$^\circ$ video with XR technology. Unlike previous studies that primarily focus on replaying performances, CGXR also considers users’ spatial movement and engagement within the venue. We propose an innovative method to enhance the immersive display of 360$^\circ$ video on mobile devices by guiding users to watch the content at its original shooting location. By leveraging XR-based spatial localization, we developed an effective visual navigational aid system that accurately leads users to specific spots. At each spot, users can experience 360$^\circ$ videos of the original performance associated with that location in an immersive manner, revisiting the experience as if attending the event again. Three user studies were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of CGXR. The results show that CGXR not only helps users accurately retrace the original event through the navigational aid system, but also enhances their understanding of the performance while providing an engaging and interactive experience, demonstrating the effectiveness and practicality of reviving a limited-time immersive theater.