The sound of a thousand escaping sighs fills the dark theatre. The stage remains curtained as synthesised string arpeggios fill the gloom before buzzing and static threatens to interrupt our anticipation. Digital disruptions ripple around us, as various colours of noise confirm that we aren’t in an analogue world anymore.

We hear vocaloid superstar Hatsune Miku offstage before we see her. Just when we start to think it has been dark for the longest time, a surtitle tells us exactly that. It’s a disarming start as we wonder if artificial intelligence has added mind reading to its capabilities. We enter the realm of Keiichiro Shibuya, artist and musician who, over the course of the next 90 minutes, will use Miku as his mouthpiece.

^{The End: Keiichiro Shibuya & Hatsune Miku: Vocaloid Opera at the OzAsia Festival. Photo © Kenshu Shintsubo}

Created in 2007, Hatsune Miku is a 3-D animated character that utilises singing synthesizer software. Outside of her foray into opera, Miku’s legions of fans compose her songs for her. The End sees Shibuya as composer, examining what it means to exist, and cease to exist. Conceived after the suicide...