Digital Shadows - Jungle Vienna

What happens when our digital shadow takes shape: tangible, interrogable, observant? To whom do we entrust our data, which structures are known and conscious to us, and who operates in the shadows? Digital Shadows is an art & science project that navigates between play and analysis, camouflage and transparency, reflecting on identity in the age of facial recognition, deepfakes, and algorithmic profiling. The focus is on questions of power, digital and physical identity, visibility, data security, and self-determination in the digital realm. These themes are condensed into a narrative engagement with the ideologies and power structures of current tech giants, referencing figures like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Palantir Technologies to illuminate the mechanisms of digital control and surveillance.

The stage play is based on the eponymous project, a collaboration between the Institute for Networks and Security at Johannes Kepler University Linz, the Circus of Knowledge of JKU, and Transitheart Productions, realized as part of the Ars Electronica Festival 2025.

Info
For ages 13 and up
50 min.
German

Artists
Transitheart Productions + CIRCUS OF KNOWLEDGE
Performers + Set Design: Doris Roth, Valerio Iurato, Selina Nowak, Alina Lugovskaya, Kayla May Corbin
Concept + Direction: Ilona Roth
Production Assistance: Linda Huber
Tech Setup + Visuals + Set Design: Sara Koniarek
Sound Design Main Theme: Reinhard Reisenzahn
Recording + Edits + Support: Yazan Al-Shoufani
Masks: Erika Lang, Claudia Tinta, Eva Stockinger, Aline Matuscheck, Ethem Sygrieder-Fischer, Ulli Asamer
Avatar Design: Jean Claude Grieco, Florian Böttcher, Cosmin Cazacu