Lauren Simpson – See You Next Tuesday

How Did It Go?

Posted on December 15, 2013 by Lauren Simpson

“Swearing is certainly not yet acceptable in public, and still occasions fines, law suits and censure”, however, recently there seems to have been “a great change in attitude” within society in general (Hughes 1991, pp. 250). Our performance aimed to open more people’s minds to this change and make them aware of the misuse of taboos. To some extent, this was achieved and in certain sections of the performance we were successful. However, there were also aspects of our piece that did not work in achieving our aim. This is something that is bound to happen when creating experimental theatre.

Arguably, one of the strongest elements during our performance, in terms of portraying our concept, was the sound scape. This involved a surrealist element and the distortion of letters and it worked in decontextualizing the words. The constant repetition begins to slowly alter the sound of the words, and they begin to form new words. We could have extended this section further, if we were to perform again. One experiment that we could do to further this is to set up a durational performance where the sound scape would be continuous for a number of hours. This length of time would allow the words to completely decontextualize and no longer sound like the same word.

The use of microphones during this section added to the atmosphere in the space. The amplified sound filled the entire ‘den’ and surrounded the audience members with the sounds of the words. Placing the speakers around the performance space meant that all the participants could hear the words being spoken by all four performers rather than just the one sitting nearest to them.

We were not trying to make swearing or the use of taboos into a good or a right thing to do, we simply wanted to make people more aware of their meanings. So, if they were to be used, then at least they are being used in the correct context. We felt this was important, as if people think about the context and definitions of these words then maybe they will be more reluctant to use them in such a ‘throw-away’ manner. We also wanted to alert our audience to the fact that there are constantly new taboos being created.

Works Cited:

Hughes, Geoffrey (1991) Swearing: A Social History of Foul Language, Oaths and Profanity in English, Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.

Concept, Performance, Rehearsal Process

ABCDEFGAY

Posted on December 11, 2013December 11, 2013 by Lauren Simpson

There are hundreds of different possible words that the English alphabet can make. Austrian-British philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein developed his theory of the ‘language game’. This is the concept of language being in its simplest form. It is the most recognised form of language. Wittgenstein “counteracted a longstanding tendency among philosophers to reduce language to assertive statements,” and he began to form this idea of “ideal language” (Huemer 2004, pp.1). An example of a ‘language game’ would be giving orders and obeying them. This demonstrates the sheer simplicity of them. A ‘language-game’ that we exploit in our performance is the teaching and learning of words. This is possibly the first time a language game occurs in someone’s life. We want to take the audience back to their childhood in order to reteach them the words.

Wittgenstein’s work also “focuses on detailed investigations of how words are used in diverse contexts of human practice” (Huemer 2004, pp. 5). Society has continually used certain words in a derogatory way, and so they have become a type of anti-ideology. Younger generations are brought up to understand that there are certain expletives that should not be used. Taking the word ‘slut’ for example, it is simply four letters constructed together to create a sound. How is this any different from creating the word ‘lust’ with the same four letters? Societal ideologies stem from the Marxist theories and Louis Althusser. An ideology “is a system…of representations…endowed with a historical existence and a role within a given society” (Ferretter 2006, pp. 76). Taboos fit into this definition, as they are historically known as being wrong, and so society knows not to use them openly. The issue is that these words are constantly phasing out of our common language. This means that new derogatory and offensive words are continually forming to replace them. This replacement needs to stop if we are to live in a world with less or even no taboos.

Through our performance, we are simply trying to show that these are just words and their harmful use within certain communities is wrong and pointless. We show this by distorting the words through our voices and playing with their structure.

Works Cited:

Ferretter, Luke (2006) Louis Althusser, Oxford: Routledge.

Huemer, Wolfgang (2004) ‘Introduction: Wittgenstein, language, philosophy of literature’, The Literary Wittgenstein, London: Routledge.

Concept, Performance, Rehearsal Process

Interesting huh?

Posted on November 27, 2013December 15, 2013 by Lauren Simpson

The curses or “words we use to cause harm have acquired importance through years and have become remarkably powerful” (Soler Pardo 2011, pp. 92).

Word: Paki

Definition:

– Noun: “a person from Pakistan or South Asia by birth or descent, especially one living in Britain” (www.oxforddictionaries.com)

Origin: abbreviation developed in 1960s

Interesting?: The word itself is simply an abbreviation of a person’s origin, which is exactly the same premise as the word ‘Brit’ being the abbreviation of ‘British’. This is interesting because ‘Paki’ is considered to be an offensive word, whereas ‘Brit’ is not. This is the case because society uses ‘Paki’ in a derogatory way towards people of Pakistan descent.

Word: Retard

Definition:

– Verb: “delay or hold back in terms of progress or development”

– Noun: “a person who has a mental disability (often used as a general term of abuse)” (www.oxforddictionaries.com)

Origin: developed in the late 15^th century, derived from the latin re (meaning ‘back’) and tardus (meaning ‘slow’)

Interesting?: There are two clear definitions listed here, but only the noun seems to be commonly used today. It is quite upsetting that the online dictionaries have to add to definitions that ‘retard’ is used as an abusive term. This reflects how common the word is within today’s society. What is also rather distressing is the fact that the use of the word as a verb is rarely ever used. I would very much doubt that the younger generations within society today, would use this word in this context.

Word: Cunt

Definition:

– Noun: “a woman’s genitals” OR “an unpleasant or stupid person” (www.oxforddictionaries.com)

Origin: Middle English

Interesting?: This is possibly THE most taboo word in the English language. Its first meaning is fairly simple, which raises the point again about how society uses the word. It shouldn’t be any different than using the word ‘vagina’. However, what is the most distressing thing is that the online dictionaries feel that they have to conform to society’s use of the word, with the second definition. This negative definition shows that it is obviously a common use of the word.

These definitions and origins are important to our piece as we want to show the audience that they are simply letters strung together in a certain format. It is because of their use that they have become such scornful, taboo words within our society.

We wouldn’t want our audience to totally change and start to use the words more freely in everyday life. However, we do want them to leave our performance thinking about why they are offended by certain words and who made them offensive. According to Soler Pardo, there are four types of taboo in the English language. The first is ‘epithets’ which “normally refer to race, ethnicity, gender or sexuality” (2011, pp. 98). For example, retard, slut and bitch. The second category is ‘profanity’ that involves religious cursing. The third and fourth categories are ‘vulgarity’ and ‘obscenity’. These include “words which refer to sexual and bodily functions or those referred to sexual organs such as cunt, dick, pee, shit or fuck” (Soler Pardo 2011, pp. 98). Throughout our performance, we are constantly referencing to the words in three of the given categories. One thing we hope to gain from the performance is which words will provoke the most reactions. A majority of our audience will be students at the University of Lincoln. Therefore, words like ‘fuck’ probably won’t shock them. ‘Fuck’ in particular has become such a common word within our generation that it has turned into a ‘throw away’ comment. As Hughes states when referring to swearing: “the terminology has become increasingly imprecise” (1991, pp. 248). This is printed in a book from 1991, which could imply that this statement is even truer of today’s language. Swear words or taboos have lost their original meanings because of overuse and misuse. Not only does our piece want to show people that they are just words, but it also wants to reiterate their meaning so people actually know what they are saying. If the meaning of them is reinforced people might not be as quick to use a taboo.

Works Cited:

Hughes, Geoffrey (1991) Swearing: A Social History of Foul Language, Oaths and Profanity in English, Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.

Soler Pardo, B (2011) ‘Swearing and Translation: A Study of the insults in the films of Quentin Tarantino’, TDX, accessed 6 December 2013.

www.oxforddictionaries.com: accessed 6 December 2013.

Concept, Performance, Practitioners, Rehearsal Process

Intimacy Exploited

Posted on November 23, 2013December 11, 2013 by Lauren Simpson

Taking inspiration from Marina Abramovic’s piece The Artist is Present, intimacy became a concept that appealed to us during the devising process. “Museum patrons were invited to stand in line for the chance to sit in the empty chair and make silent eye contact” with Marina for as long as they wanted. This blurs the line between performer and spectator and makes them one in the same thing. It also creates an intimate performance space as the two participants are close together with only a table between them. As the show progressed, the table was no longer used to enhance the intimate feel. “Intertwined with feelings of closeness, trust and familiarity, intimacy occurs through effective communication between people in some kind of relationship” (Chatzichristodoulou & Zerihan 2012, pp. 1). The performer and the audience already have an established relationship, so why not test the boundaries of that relationship by incorporating intimacy. This can be achieved through careful audience participation.

“All spectators are active irrespective of the form of performance”

(Chatzichristodoulou & Zerihan 2012, pp. 4). However, if they can be seen by all other audience members and the performers themselves, they are less likely to hide away when it comes to the participatory aspects. Opening up the dramaturgical barriers, and inviting the audience in could be very dangerous and requires a huge amount of trust in them. However, if you are fully committed, “offering them real choices; giving them a sense of ownership, or the opportunity to make a meaningful contribution” to your performance, then you are more likely to gain reward from their input (Freshwater 2009, pp. 76). One section of our piece involves opening up a discussion around taboo words or subjects, which has the potential to go very wrong. However, this is one of the experiments of the piece. We want to see people’s instant reactions and hear their thoughts. This ties in with the techniques of Marina Abramovic who “encourages the idea of ‘confrontation’ with the audience: the artwork should provoke a response” (Richards 2010, pp. 68). This section of our piece is directly asking for a response and so prevents us, as performers, with a number of risks. However, this is the idea of experimental performance. It should provoke a number of different responses and cause discussion or debate.

Directing dialogue directly at the audience engages them to listen intently to the words that are being said. This is particularly important with our piece as the main content throughout the performance is the spoken words. We will be limiting our audience capacity to a maximum of ten people. This will allow us to address each individual and their opinion won’t get lost in the crowd. “Louis Althusser’s subject hailed by the policeman,” refers to the fact that it is easier, and more effective, to address one person rather than an entire ‘public’. This is “suggesting that any onlookers will move on when they understand that they are not the subjects of address” (Sherman 2011, pp. 56). Applying this to a performance, it means that we can articulate a clearer message to less people. If we had a larger audience, people would lose interest when they were not being directly addressed.

Intimacy can also be achieved by creating a ‘safe’ performance space. Our style of performance takes on a teaching approach. It’s as if the audience are children learning language for the first time, and the performers take on a teaching role. We thought back to our own childhood and where we felt the safest. Safe places are where children “feel they can explore and roam with some freedom” (Hancock & Gillen 2007, pp. 348). They are places of familiarity and comfort. Instantly, the idea of a den came to mind. This seemed like the ideal option for a performance space. It would lead the audience into a sense of security which juxtaposes the content of the piece. This picture represents a snapshot of childhood that we want to reproduce.

The toys are innocent and the cushions are brightly coloured. Everything is soft in texture and inviting to touch. The fairy lights create a warm atmosphere as opposed to harsh lighting. We liked the idea of the content of the piece being very oppositional to the environment.

Works Cited:

Chatzichristodoulou, M, & Zerihan, R (2012) Intimacy Across Visceral And Digital Performance / Edited By Maria Chatzichristodoulou And Rachel Zerihan, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Freshwater, Helen (2009) Theatre & Audience, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.

Hancock, R, & Gillen, J (2007) ‘Safe Places in Domestic Spaces: Two-Year-Olds at Play in their Homes’, Children’s Geographies, 5, 4, pp. 337-351.

Richards, Mary (2010) Marina Abramovic, Oxon: Routledge.

Sherman, JF (2011) ‘Plural intimacy in micropublic performances’, Performance Research, 16, 4, p. 52-61, viewed 18 November 2013.

Performance, Practitioners, Rehearsal Process

Tim…The Inspiration!

Posted on October 26, 2013December 15, 2013 by Lauren Simpson

Forced Entertainment are a contemporary company who adopt a very collaborative approach to their performance making. Although they have a writer/director figure, Tim Etchells, they all contribute fully to the development process. This is an idea that we want to adopt for our piece as we do not want to be constrained by a text or a specific structure. Improvising in the rehearsal room “allows for spoken text on stage to be less constrained by the conventions of realism and more responsive to contemporary life.” (Bailes, S 2011, pp. 67) This is a trademark strategy used by Forced Entertainment. We can freely experiment with ideas without fear of it going wrong. Sometimes the better ideas come from unsuccessful endeavours.

A huge range of ideas can appear through play and these often happen within the breaks in rehearsal when actors are simply being themselves. You can’t always predict where ideas will occur but it is imperative that you experiment with them to test if they could work. If they are successful, you can then choose to explore them further and develop a structure. It is inevitable that you will leave “behind a trail of failed attempts and nonsense” but “slowly, very slowly, you accumulate a store of scenes and fragments that you love.” (Etchells 2012, pp. 36)

As well as the company’s techniques inspiring us in our piece, one of their performances Filthy Words and Phrases really interested us. The performance is a 7 hour piece in which one woman writes words which are

“‘normally’ unsayable, unwriteable and illegitimate”

(www.forcedentertainment.com) on a chalkboard in an old school hall. We found this notion of the ‘unsayable’ interesting and within ten minutes we had already compiled a list of words which are considered taboo in society. However, they are just words. They are simply letters combined together like any other word. So, why is it that they are so frowned upon? This led us to the idea of presenting them in such a ridiculous way that they lose their current meaning.

http://forcedentertainment.com/page/3073/Filthy-Words-and-Phrases/91#-gallery

As they state on their website, Forced Entertainment are “interested in making performances that excite, frustrate, challenge, question and entertain.” (www.forcedentertainment.com) This sums up exactly what we want to achieve when creating our piece of contemporary work.

Works Cited:

Bailes, S (2011) Performance Theatre And The Poetics Of Failure: Forced Entertainment, Goat Island, Elevator Repair Service, London: Routledge.

Etchells, T (2012) ‘In the Silences: A text with very many digressions and forty-three footnotes concerning the process of making performance’, Performance Research, 17, 1, pp. 33-37.