DanceHack 2026: Resonant Bodies
Presented by Kinetech Arts. Co-sponsored by Berkeley Center for New Media (BCNM), Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation, Center for New Music and Audio Technology (CNMAT), and ODC Theater
organized by Daiane Lopes da Silva, Lisa Wymore, Sheldon Smith, and Weidong Yang
DanceHack is an annual festival where movement artists, engineers, technologists, and researchers interested in “hacking,” aka playful, curiosity-driven exploration, come together for a weekend. The goal is to exchange knowledge, challenge assumptions, and co-create at the intersection of dance and technology. DanceHack involves a three-day program packed with workshops, collaboration, and mini-performances. There is a final expo-style event at the end where participants share what they learned via performances and presentations.
2026 Theme: Resonant Bodies
This year's theme, Resonant Bodies, is intended to provoke thoughts and action about how our bodies/selves resonate with one another and with our technologies. What is it to "vibe" with our machines? To what degree is AI aware of "vibing" with us? As we aim to discover new resonances - between people, between disciplines, and between the organic and the digital - lets work together to find new ways of making, feeling, thinking, and performing.
Wednesday, Feb 18: Pre-Hack Meetup
Exact Time: TBD
ODC Theater Annex, San Francisco
A casual meetup to welcome participants and kick off the event.
Friday, Feb 20: Workshops (UC Berkeley Campus)
1:00–2:15pm, 2:45–4:00pm, 4:30–5:45pm
BCNM Commons, Room B102, Grimes Engineering Center, UC Berkeley
Friday, Feb 20: Participant Reception
6:00pm
Center for New Music and Audio Technologies, UC Berkeley
Saturday, Feb 21 - Sunday, Feb 22: Collaborative Hacking and Performance Prototyping
Exact Times: TBD
Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation, UC Berkeley
Sunday, Feb 22: Informal Public Performance
Exact Time: TBD
Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation, UC Berkeley
Featured Workshops + Instructors
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Andrew Blanton: Good Vibrations: Vibe Coding for Creative Performance
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Avital Meshi & collaborators: Harmonious Cacophony: Embodied AI Voice Agents
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Ian Winters: Isadora I: Real-Time Video + Data Integration
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Sheldon Smith: Isadora II: [Workshop details TBD]
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Daiane Lopes da Silva & Weidong Yang: Contact Improvisation: Mind-Body Calibration
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Merli V. Guerra: Choreoichnology: Motion Capture + Dance Fossils
Learn more about our instructors at www.dancehack.org and below
About the Workshop Leaders
Andrew Blanton
Workshop: Good Vibrations - Vibe Coding for Creative Performance
Andrew Blanton is a media artist and percussionist. He received his BM in Music Performance from The University of Denver (2008) and a Masters of Fine Arts in New Media Art at the University of North Texas (2013). He is currently an Assistant Professor of Digital Media Art at San Jose State University in San Jose California teaching data visualization.
Avital Meshi with collective support by Sheldon Smith, Lysa Wymore, Claudia Alick, Valencia James, and Hana Kozuka.
Workshop: Harmonious Cacophony: Embodied AI Voice Agents
This workshop invites participants to experiment with real-time AI vocal agents, embodying them through dance and movement, and sharing their words out loud through language and sonic resonation.
Avital Meshi is a New Media Artist. She is a Ph.D. student in the Performance Studies Program at UC Davis, and she holds an MFA from The Digital Arts and New Media program at UC Santa Cruz and a BFA from the School of The Art Institute of Chicago. She also holds a BSc and an MSc in Behavioral Biology from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.
Ian Winters
Workshop: Isadora I
A 1 hour introduction to Isadora 4 with a focus on use for creating immersive live sound and video performance as well as integrating live / interactive data sources such as motion, sensor and robotics either locally or via remote networks. It offers the ability to create technically complex work that is easily usable in improvisational and devised performance contexts.
Ian Winters is a media and video artist making works for gallery, site-specific projection / light works, as well live performance staged work. Often collaborating with composers, directors, and choreographers, he creates both staged and site-specific visual and acoustic media environments internationally. Learn about his work and read his full bio at https://ianwinters.com.
Daiane Lopes da Silva and Weidong Yang
Workshop: Contact Improvisation - Calibrating Mind and Body
In this workshop, Dai & Wei guide participants into mind and body calibration through deep listening, full body awareness and attunement with oneself and others. What are the patterns and habits we carry within us? Do they change as we engage with different people? How can this practice inform the way we collaborate with others? Dancer and choreographer Daiane Lopes da Silva and scientist Weidong Yang are founders and co-directors of Kinetech Arts. Learn about their work at www.kinetecharts.org
Merli V. Guerra
Workshop: Choreoinchnology
Merli V. Guerra leads a workshop exploring what she calls "choreoichnology"—the art of fossilizing a dancer's movements through space. Engage in an exploration of improvisation, motion capture, and 3D modeling (both virtual and physical) to discover how your own movements translate from kinetic experience to sculptural "dance fossil" form. Merli V. Guerra, MFA, is an award winning choreographer and interdisciplinary artist, and Assistant Professor of DanceTechnology at Texas A&M University. To learn about her work and read full bio, visit www.merliguerra.com
About Kinetech Arts
Founded in 2013 by choreographer Daiane Lopes da Silva and scientist Weidong Yang, Kinetech Arts is a non-profit organization that brings together dancers, scientists, and digital artists to explore the dynamic intersection of movement, science, and technology. Our artistic journey delves deep into the ever-changing relationship between humans and technology, contemplating its profound impact on the human-machine ecosystem. Our vision at KA is to unite the performing arts, science, and tech communities through immersive live performances and interdisciplinary collaborations to empower innovative ideas on a cutting-edge platform. KA is currently Home Company at ODC Theater and resident artists at Lucas Artists Residency Program.
Accessibility
BCNM events are free and open to the public. This event will be held in-person, on the UC Berkeley campus. We strive to meet all access and accommodation needs. Please contact info.bcnm [at] berkeley.edu with requests or questions.
BCNM is proud to make conversations with leading scholars, artists, and technologists freely available to the public. Please help us continue this tradition by making a tax-deductible donation today. If you are in the position to support the program, we suggest $5 per event, or $100 a year.