About

PXR started as a grand idea to gather live performance artists and technologists in virtual reality to talk about digital art making and innovating through content. It would become the first and only conference on XR (virtual, augmented, and mixed reality) performance creation in Canada.

Exterior of a ski lodge at night in Altspace with northern lights and galaxies in the sky. There is a banner hanging from the entrance displaying the conference keynote speaker.
Conference attendees entering for the 2022 Keynote speech.

Since 2020, Over four hundred artists, academics, influencers, producers and technologists, from diverse backgrounds spanning the country and the globe, have gathered together digitally in VR at the annual event.

Single Thread Theatre Company and Electric Company Theatre initially brought together eight theatre companies, four tech firms, and over 30 speakers and presenters from seven provinces, four countries, two states and two territories to present PXR2020. Presenters included Oculus Executive Producer Yelena Rachitsky, Mammalian Diving Reflex’s Darren O’Donnell, interdisciplinary Indigenous artist Casey Koyczan, Samuel Tétreault of Les 7 Doigts Circus & Athomas Goldberg of Shocap, Debi Wong from re:Naissance Opera, Dan Miller from Unity, Tyler McCulloch from Archiact, Catherine Bourgeois of Joe, Jack et John, Beth Kates of Playground Studios and Ian Garrett of Toasterlab.

PXR2021 developed into a week long Conference, and PXR2022 delivered eight consecutive days of programming, with 35 presentations on XR in Live Performance.

The conference has now grown into a hybrid event held in VR and at in-person hubs in Vancouver, Toronto, and Kingston. The conference continues to prioritize interactive, experiential presentations which innovate across the broad scope of XR, building on the strengths of gathering in VR and designing spaces and experiences which optimize the content and the medium.

Conference attendees in Altspace gather around a hologram of a person giving a concert. They have a guitar, microphone, and keyboard in front of them and are wearing a VR headset.
Conference attendees exploring a beehive world in Altspace. There is a big stained glass window shaped like honey comb and a honey waterfall.