U. Spierling and N. Szilas (Eds.): ICIDS 2008, LNCS 5334, pp. 250–263, 2008. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2008 Improvisation and Performance as Models for Interacting with Stories Joshua Tanenbaum and Karen Tanenbaum School of Interactive Arts & Technology, Simon Fraser University-Surrey 250-13450 102nd Ave, Surrey, BC, V3T 0A3 {joshuat,ktanenba}@sfu.ca Abstract. One common metaphor for Interactive Storytelling has been the notion of Interactive Dramas, in which players assume the first-person role of the main character in a digitally mediated narrative. In this paper we explore the model of improvisation as a means of understanding the relationship between the author/designer and the reader/player of such narratives. This model allows for a new formulation of the notion of agency, by shifting the concept of the reader from a player-centric model to a performer-centric model. We also show how we can conceive of interactions between performers and authors as being governed by the same rules that are in play between multiple performers in a piece of improvisational theatre. We connect this idea to a phenomenological theory of human computer interaction and cognition which foregrounds the role of communication and commitment between interactors. Keywords: Agency, Improvisational Theatre, Drama, Performance, Interactive Narrative. 1 Introduction One common metaphor for Interactive Storytelling has been the notion of Interactive Dramas, in which players assume the first-person role of the main character in a digitally mediated narrative. One of the earliest scholarly explorations of digitally mediated narratives is Laurel’s Computers as Theater, in which she outlines a model for Interactive Narrative based on theatrical performance. [1] In this paper we explore the implications of using the model of improvisational theatre as a way to understand the relationship between the author/designer and the reader/player of such narratives. This model allows for a new formulation of the notion of agency, by shifting the concept of the reader from a player-centric model to a performer-centric model. We conceive of interactions between readers and authors as being a co-performance mediated by the computational system, and governed by some of the same rules that are in play between multiple performers in a piece of improvisational theatre. We connect this idea to a phenomenological theory of human computer interaction and cognition which foregrounds the role of communication and commitment between interactors.