Dr. Néill O’Dwyer (research fellow and principal investigator of Research-Ireland-funded project, PIX-ART) and Assoc. Prof. Nicholas Johnson from the Department of Drama along with colleagues (Prof. Rachel McDonnell, Assis. Prof. Gareth W. Young and TRDA PhD researcher Syeda Nikhat Mohsin) from the School of Computer Science and Statistics (SCSS) recently presented Not I VR, an immersive virtual reality (VR) adaptation of Samuel Beckett’s Not I (1972), at the launch of Research Ireland’s inaugural strategy, "Curiosity, Capability, Competitiveness – Charting Ireland’s Research and Innovation Future 2026–2030", in the Round Room at the Mansion House last week.
Image from left to right: Research Ireland CEO Diarmuid O’Brien, Prof. Rachel McDonnell (SCSS), Assoc. Prof. Nicholas Johnson (Drama), An Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Dr. Gareth W. Young (SCSS), TRDA PhD researcher Syeda Nikhat Mohsin (SCSS), and Dr. Néill O’Dwyer (Drama, TCD).
The invitation offered a unique opportunity to demonstrate the creative and research potential of immersive technologies to a distinguished audience that included An Taoiseach Micheál Martin, James Lawless TD, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Research Ireland CEO Diarmuid O’Brien, and presidents and senior leaders from universities across Ireland. Visitors to the exhibition were able to experience the VR work first-hand, including the Taoiseach and Minister Lawless.
Developed through the PIX-ART research initiative in collaboration with the Trinity Centre for Beckett Studies and Enda Bates (from the Dept. of Electronic & Electrical Engineering), Not I VR explores how extended reality (XR) technologies can transform the staging and reception of canonical theatre. The project uses immersive VR, motion-capture performance tools and game engine technology to reinterpret Beckett’s radically subtractive, modernist drama, investigating how new media environments can intensify the work’s focus on voice, embodiment and perception. As recent research from the project shows, immersive media provides a powerful platform for re-examining, reinterpreting and rejuvenating intangible cultural heritage (the performances of Samuel Beckett’s drama) and exploring new forms of audience engagement in contemporary digital culture.
The exhibition highlighted the growing role of the performing arts within Ireland’s wider research and innovation landscape, which is in line with the world’s leading creative industrial economies. Practice-based research in theatre and performance increasingly intersects with fields such as computer science, software engineering, visual computing and digital media production, generating new knowledge, creating new job opportunities for performing artists and computer scientists alike, and contributing to the development of the creative industries.
Image: James Lawless TD, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science watches on as An Taoiseach Micheál Martin is immersed in Not I VR (a virtual reality experience based on Samuel Beckett’s Not I) in the Round Room at the Mansion House for the launch of the Research Ireland 2025–2030 strategy.
The project formed part of a broader showcase demonstrating the diversity of research supported by Research Ireland. Many thanks to Olivia Waters (ADAPT Centre) for the invitation to present the project at such a prestigious event. Special thanks to Edward Beckett, Curtis Brown Ltd., and to Céline Thobois-Gupta for support. This project emanated from research conducted with the financial support of Research Ireland, Grant Number IRC-21/PATH-A/9446 and Trinity College’s Research Boost Programme 2024/25.
For further information please email Dr Néill O’Dwyer at ODWYERNE@tcd.ie.