Roma Patel is a scenographer and digital artist, who joined the Horizon CDT as a PhD student in Autumn 2013. Her research, within the Mixed Reality Lab at the University of Nottingham, focused on how the convergence between childrens’ theatre and digital technologies can make performances more multi-sensory, playful, participatory and interactive for younger audiences.
Following completion of her PhD research, Roma was awarded an internally-funded Horizon CDT impact grant in September 2017 to further engage the public with her research, by carrying out the following activities:
- Collaborate with an experienced creative technologist from the Mixed Reality Lab (MRL), University of Nottingham to develop the interactive technologies for a performance installation for children which she is designing for Theatre Hullabaloo in Darlington, which opens the doors on it’s new venue on 12 December 2017.
- Conduct a series of interviews with staff from Nottingham Castle to find out what lessons can be learnt about sustainability of bespoke technologies from their interactive augmented reality (AR) exhibition that has been running since 2014.
- Source new cultural partners who may be interested in hosting or touring the performance of her installation.
- Work in collaboration with Polka Theatre in London to organise workshops and curate an exhibition of work from Horizon and MRL that explores the wider implications of technology and children for their Children’s Theatre Festival in May 2018.
Roma Patel’s research is supported by the EPSRC-funded Horizon Centre for Doctoral Training at the University of Nottingham (funded by grant reference EP/G037574/1).
