First I was all...
When I think about interpretations of plays that use a "found" or "transformed space," my mind usually jumps to Shakespeare. For example, Edward Hall and Michael Boyd put on a production of the Henry VI cycle in an abattoir. This was used to ultimately highlight the butchery and brutality of the War of the Roses as the characters describe it.
Another work that had inspired me used a script as a jumping-off point rather than gospel (see axiom 6): Cry, Trojans! The Wooster group's take on Troilus and Cressida features lacrosse, (what many considered offensive portrayals of) Native Americans, and an "utter disregard" for the text. For a review, see: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/08/theater/review-cry-trojans-is-the-wooster-groups-take-on-troilus-and-cressida.html
Another work that had inspired me used a script as a jumping-off point rather than gospel (see axiom 6): Cry, Trojans! The Wooster group's take on Troilus and Cressida features lacrosse, (what many considered offensive portrayals of) Native Americans, and an "utter disregard" for the text. For a review, see: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/08/theater/review-cry-trojans-is-the-wooster-groups-take-on-troilus-and-cressida.html
For some moments of "wait... what is happening???" see below:
Talkback about the show:
But then I was all...
I remember Austin talking about an app that guides you through a murder mystery and I couldn't help thinking about alternate reality games like Cicada 3301. To the uninitiated, here's an adorable British man giving you the run-down:
I think it could be really fun to take some elements of this game (perhaps on a more surface level; I sure as hell don't want to download Tor) and use it for a show not unlike how The 15th Line used twitter. I'm just being more expansive than that. We can use the Internet itself as a found space where the space belongs to both the performer and the audience. Within this framework we could use elements of the text of The Changeling (you know-- the one our Voice 2 book is obsessed with) as our guide for a disjointed narrative about appearance, deceit, and... how nothing is secret forever once it's on the internet. The biggest reveals of the show (murder and deception) should be the secrets uncovered by our digital audience.
I know we graduate students have soooo much time so here's the Helen Mirren Changeling in its 3-hour-long glory:
Naturally, as we are using the text as not necessarily "the starting point nor the goal of the production," we have a lot of interpretive freedom. Beatrice could be a make-up tutorial blogger, for instance! Maybe you could find Alsemero's potions in real life by following a handful of clues! We could uncover the plot to murder Diaphanta by following certain twitter threads-- and Diaphanta herself can have a vlog that brings back memories of Lonelygirl15. Why stop there? We can have multiple vlogs or blog postings from the various characters. The romance in the madhouse can be expressed by coded cabalistic writings on reddit a la r/A858. The possibilities are endless, y'all!
That's all well and good but how do we get people hot on The Changeling trail?
You'll call me crazy (and maybe I am), but something like Chatroulette would be ideal. The audience is actively putting themselves out there to see something unusual (so you aren't forcing a show on them necessarily). They could be easily enticed by something with viral potential and then given the requisite information to fall down the rabbit hole we have concocted for them. We could take a top 40 hit (like "Bad at Love" or "Havana," for instance) and give it the Steve Kardynal treatment all within a vague context of our narrative:
What sorts of things would you say about the piece you want to create?
It's a love letter to the Internet's history of the mysterious and unexpected. Simultaneously, we have an examination of the isolation and artifice of the digital age-- how it corrupts us, maddens us, and entrances us.
Emily this is FACINATING. The idea of using the internet as a "space" in and of itself is completely unique and also makes total sense considering the age we are in. Also, talk about making theatre more accessible. Though perhaps not what we hope to share with audiences in the way of traditional theatre (for those purists among us- I know I can be a little snooty about what I consider theatre) our art form will be extinct before we know it if we refuse to adapt. So again I say: your idea of using the internet to do so is brilliant.
ReplyDeleteWhat I am curious about is if we were to use something like Chatroulette (like you said: I think it's important that our audiences "choose" to put themselves in the way of something weird) how do we maintain a "through-line" for our narrative? OR is it even necessary to have a through-line? If durationals like Quizoola have shown us anything it's that there doesn't necessarily need to be a traditional story in order for something to be entertaining (although, like Mike, I wonder then how we differentiate between theatre and performance art). So if we 86 story- or a least break it down into bite sized, Chatroulette appropriate pieces- then this question is moot at the end of the day.
Either way, a super interesting idea. Puts a whole new spin on the idea of what actually constitutes a "theatre space."