Another attempt

Next week I’m heading to Wellington, New Zealand to present at PopCAANZ 2015 (AKA The 2015 Popular Culture Association of Australia and New Zealand Conference).

It’s my first time presenting at an academic conference (and also my first time visiting New Zealand) and I feel surprisingly prepared. That’s the result of a conscious plan mind you. I could very easily see myself sitting in my hotel room the night before my presentation sweating over the fact that I still hadn’t really nailed down what I was going to say. So, I built in a couple of pre-presentation presentation commitments to make sure that, if I was going to have that horrible night before, it was going to be the night before some other, lower-stakes event.

And it worked :) Which is not to say that I’m 100% happy with the presentation I’ve written. I know it’s not a good reflection of where my thinking about my project is actually at. But, it will do. It’s prepared, it’s thoughtful and it’s good enough. Funnily enough, learning to take a step forward when I feel like what I’ve got is only just good enough is likely to be one of the best outcomes of doing a PhD for me.

One of the things I find difficult when I’m transcribing interviews is that I can’t do that and listen to focus@will at the same time.

I’m always curious about how an immersive (or interactive) show is cast.

The Republic Game seems to have taken quite a unique approach both in terms of what the audition itself involved and then also filming those auditions to help promote the show.

I found my way to the The Other Way Works website via their Kickstarter for an re-staging/tour of Black Tonic.

There are some very, very interesting production concepts listed on their website, including this one for Afterlife:

Afterlife will be a 3 night residential retreat for 12 participants.

Participants will be led through a programme of creative exercises in small groups to allow them to surface and explore a series of positive memories. From these they will select ONE memory from their life so far that would like to live in for eternity. An immersive experience of their chosen memory will be created for each participant, and they will receive a box of artistic interpretations of the memory (memory souvenirs) to take home that will act as memory triggers.

The retreat will be held in a secluded location in the UK.

The project is inspired by the 1998 film After Life by Kore-eda Hirokazu.

  Afterlife R&D from The Other Way Works on Vimeo.

David Lynch In-Studio Footage from David Lynch on Vimeo.

Observing an (accidental) theme about courage running across the the music I’ve been listening to and the (non-PhD) books I’ve been reading lately.

Recent highlights:

All Things Will Unwind by My Brightest Diamond

‘Aptly, the entry ticket to the Port Arthur site is a playing card. Each visitor is given a one at random and invited to ‘find the convict’ who corresponds with it.’

Source: http://www.realtimearts.net/article/125/11818

I wonder what immersive theatre fans make of sites / experiences like the Port Arthur Historic Site? I think it feels too close to home for me – the tragedy and weight of the history there – I think I’d find it hard to slip into the receptive, playful mindset that’s my norm for shows like Sleep No More and Then She Fell. Or, if I did, I think I’d feel guilty about doing so.

I remember my first trip back to Tasmania after the Port Arthur massacre. I was on the boat from the mainland to Tasmania and as we neared land large groups of passengers (and me) stood looking quietly out the windows. For a minute or two there was no excited – end of a long trip, start of a holiday or return home – buzz. Just quiet. I wouldn’t have known what to say then. I don’t know what to say about it now.

I had been to the Port Arthur Historic Site prior to those events and I recall being uncertain how to respond then as well. I was getting a lot of ‘entertainment’ cues from the Site and I remember feeling awkward because I didn’t know how to balance enjoyment of that theatre with a consciousness and respect for the Site’s history.

‘Our first task as audience members is to use the app to state our own sexuality. We are, unlike the performers, unseen and unaccountable as our fingers flit across our touchscreens and the breakdown is displayed on the projection wall. Other questions follow: “When was the last time you had sex?,” “At what age did you lose your virginity?” The answers feel variously mischievous, unreliable and confessional.’

Source: http://www.realtimearts.net/article/125/11839

Earlier this week I read this: ‘David Lynch decries ‘pathetic’ arts funding cuts – and graffiti’

And then the front page of the local newspaper on Wednesday:

One of my favourite (very loosely) Sleep No More related vimeos:

I love quick reaction ‘before and after’ style video reviews. In this example the reviewers say some interesting things about what is (or isn’t) ‘immersive’.

This is coming to the Salamanca Arts Centre later this year. Looks interesting (also exhausting). Wondering what they’ll do in terms of the audience though – will they be on stage around the perimeter as in the video below or just seated as normal?