The Oracle: A Prototype

The development of operatic works that involve artificial intelligence (AI) is an expanding field of artistic inquiry. In order to test how AI-generated text can be used in a dynamic and responsive opera libretto, the prototypical micro-opera The Oracle was conceived and presented live at PlayLab in Skövde. The theme of the immersive opera was the myth of the Delphic oracle, with the twist that the seeress now was connected to the digital realm rather than a divine dimension. The conceptual prototype was designed with interactive elements and included a rhetoric and metric model for real-time text generation, a basic musical structure, and an set design into which the participating visitors could enter one by one to meet the singing soprano oracle, who conveyed the computer’s message to the audience. The process and the performances were documented and the design features and multi-sensory composition of The Oracle can be further elaborated in future artistic productions.