cs.HCMar 25, 2026

Aesthetics of Robot-Mediated Applied Drama: A Case Study on REMind

Authors: Elaheh Sanoubari, Alicia Pan, Keith Rebello, Neil Fernandes, Andrew Houston, Kerstin Dautenhahn

Organizations: Systems Design Engineering, University of Waterloo · Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Waterloo · Communication Arts, University of Waterloo

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Abstract

Social robots are increasingly used in education, but most applications cast them as tutors offering explanation-based instruction. We explore an alternative: Robot-Mediated Applied Drama (RMAD), in which robots function as life-like puppets in interactive dramatic experiences designed to support reflection and social-emotional learning. This paper presents REMind, an anti-bullying robot role-play game that helps children rehearse bystander intervention and peer support. We focus on a central design challenge in RMAD: how to make robot drama emotionally and aesthetically engaging despite the limited expressive capacities of current robotic platforms. Through the development of REMind, we show how performing arts expertise informed this process, and argue that the aesthetics of robot drama arise from the coordinated design of the wider experience, not from robot expressivity alone.

Figures & tables

Figure 1: REMind engages children in role-play with three Furhat robots.
Figure 2: Storytelling elements in the REMind game world.
Figure 3: Example translation from StorySync script into a live scene in REMind .
Figure 4: REMind script using a gesture labeled ‘Pleased,’ to convey fear.
Figure 5: Script of robot’s reaction to ‘empathy training’ was affectively tuned by adding gestures ( g/g/ ), and pauses ( d/d/ ), tweaking speech rate ( p/p/ ), and style ( s/s/ ).
Figure 6: Children’s storyboards in [ 21 ] often depicted group laughter in peer bullying scenarios, which informed the sound design of REMind bullying scene.
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