|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||
 |
|
|
TRANSATLANTIC OR THE FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT DIARY / EDITION 4 |
|
|
Are you still there? I’m quite sure that you are biting your nails because your curiosity is killing you, isn’t it? You DO want to know how all this unfolds... The days passed quickly and I’m almost leaving Brussels. An airplane will fly me back home, where I belong. Rabih Mroué (one of the amazing discoveries here in the festival) said, in his incredible text FIRES, that his history, the history of his country is irrevocably linked with fire. I think that my country has the same destiny with a slight difference: while in Rabih’s country the fire is physical and concrete, in mine, fire is a metaphor: is something hidden, that devours everything in a silent way, no one can understand how a whole nation can turn into ashes, but it is like that: my country in ashes and no one saw the fire. We are trying to find someone responsible for all this; we are trying to develop a strategy in order to find the guilty one. There must be one. We can not think, not even for a second, that we can be part of that fire, that we provoked it, we, common citizens voting those bastards in, allowing them to rule the country for their own interests. The Argentinean identity denies that same identity: to be an Argentinean is to renounce being one. The paradoxes of a nation condemned to a cannibalistic party. We need honesty. We need the truth. When I met Rabih here in Brussels we began talking about our countries: to my surprise Lebanon is Argentina and Buenos Aires is Beirut: the resemblance between the two countries / cities are so deep that I was completely shocked when I heard all the stories that Rabih told me. We became close friends. We shared a bitter experience. We are sons of the fire. We are brothers in despair and strength. When I met Rabih I began to understand a very important thing concerning theatre. And I really want to talk about this in this edition of the Diary, if you will allow me... A THEORY? COME ON, YOU ARE NOW TRYING TO CONVINCE EVERYBODY THAT YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY. YOU STAY HERE FOR A MONTH DOING NOTHING, YOU WERE JUST CHATTING AND CHATTING. TRYING TO BE POLITE WITH EVERYONE, DENYING REALITY, TRYING TO FIND GOOD THINGS TO SAY CONCERNING THE PERFORMANCES YOU SAW AND ALL THE PEOPLE YOU MET... YOU LIED ALL THE TIME. YOU ARE NOW TRYING TO CREATE A THEORY CONCERNING HONESTY AND TRUTH, AND YOU WERE HERE, DURING ALL THIS MONTH, SHAMELESSLY LYING TO EVERYONE... COME ON, “LITTLE - ARGENTINEAN – POOR - THIRD WORLD – ARTIST”, BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF AT LEAST FOR ONE FUCKING TIME AND TELL THE TRUTH. IT WILL NOT BE SO DIFFICULT. Would you please shut up? WHY SHOULD I? THERE IS NO REASON FOR THAT. I WILL END THIS DIARY. DO YOU WANT HONESTY? DO YOU WANT THE TRUTH? A long pause. ANSWER ME... DO YOU WANT THE TRUTH? DO YOU WANT HONESTY? IS THAT WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR? Another long pause. OK. YOUR SILENCE IS AN ANSWER. I WILL SPEAK. HONESTY IS WHAT WE HAD THIS WEEK AT THE FESTIVAL AND IT’S FOR THAT REASON YOU ARE SO TOUCHED ABOUT THIS WORD. AND YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT HONESTY IS NOT A COMMON VALUE NOWADAYS. FORCED ENTERTAINMENT’S PERFORMANCES: INSTRUCTIONS FOR FORGETTING and AND ON THE THOUSANDTH NIGHT, THREE POSTERS BY RABIH MROUE AND ELIAS KHOURY, THE SEA & POISON BY GOAT ISLAND AND AFTER SUN BY LA CARNICERIA TEATRO WERE EXAMPLES, ON DIFFERENT LEVELS, OF HOW TO PERFORM NOWADAYS. So... according to you... there is a rule for performing today? Why don’t you publish a book? You’ll become famous with that. Don’t you think? DON’T MOCK ON ME. YOU KNOW PERFECTLY WELL WHAT I WANT TO SAY CONCERNING THIS. THERE IS A LACK OF HONESTY IN THEATRE TODAY. AND THIS IS MY PERSONAL IDEA CONCERNING THIS SUBJECT; I’M NOT ASKING ANYONE TO SHARE IT. I’M JUST SAYING WHAT I THINK. I’M JUST EXPOSING MY TRUTH. I DO THINK THAT THEATRE IS A KIND OF MASTURBATING ACTIVITY NOWADAYS. THAT THE ACTORS ARE IN LOVE WITH THEIR BODIES AND THEIR VOICES, THAT THE AUTHORS ARE SEDUCED BY THEIR OWN WORDS AND THE STAGE DIRECTORS ARE FACINATED WITH THEIR INTELLIGENCE AND ABILITIES. LET’S TRY A THEATRE OF INCOMPETENCE, A THEATRE IN A REAL SEARCH FOR AN AUDIENCE, BUT NOT TO SATISFY THEM; A THEATRE OF HONESTY AND TRUTH SHOULD PUT A LOT OF PEOPLE ASIDE. NOT EVERYONE CAN STAND HONESTY. NOT EVERYONE CAN STAND THE TRUTH. So here we are: theatre people are the enlightened ones and the audience always lacks knowledge, and we, oh ye theatre maker, are going to illuminate them with our truth and honesty. Complete bullshit; this is what you are saying: just a load of megalomaniacal arguments. YOU CAN SAY WHAT YOU WANT, BUT I AM REALLY CONVINCED OF THIS. AND I AM NOT GOING TO SAY WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO PUT INTO MY MOUTH. I’M NOT SAYING THAT THEATRE PEOPLE ARE ENLIGHTENED AND THE AUDIENCE IS IGNORENT: THAT IS WHAT YOUR THEATRE DOES. What do you mean by YOUR theatre? YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. I THINK THAT YOU WERE SO TOUCHED BY THOSE PERFORMANCES I MENTIONED JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT DEALING WITH REPRESENTATION, THEY ARE JUST PRESENTING THINGS WITH HONESTY AND GENEROSITY. AND THAT IS ANOTHER FUCKING WORD THAT EVERYBODY HAS FORGOTTEN. Don’t you think that this discourse is like a political campaign against one party in order to keep the votes for the opponent? It seems to me that you are defending your colleagues for political reasons. AND WHAT’S WRONG WITH THAT? WHAT’S WRONG IF IT IS LIKE THAT? DON’T TELL ME THAT YOU DON’T AGREE WITH ME... IT’S NOT TRUE. YOU ARE COMPLETELY CONVINCED WITH WHAT I’M SAYING, IT’S JUST THAT YOU CAN’T STAND AGREEING WITH ME. YOU ARE FORCED TO THINK IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. YOU ARE TRYING NOT TO HEAR YOUR REAL CONVICTIONS; YOU ARE JUST TRYING TO SHOW EVERYBODY THAT YOU HAVE OTHER IDEAS. BUT YOU AGREE WITH ME ON THIS, I KNOW YOU DO AGREE. Ok. OK? JUST OK? SO? WHAT DO YOU MEAN WITH OK? SHOULD I TAKE THIS “OK” AS AN AFFIRMATIVE ANSWER? DO YOU AGREE WITH ME THAT THERE IS A LACK OF GENEROSITY ON STAGE, THAT THERE IS A LACK OF HONESTY? AND ALL THOSE PERFORMANCES SHARED THESE WORDS. AND THAT IS WHAT MOVES YOU. THAT IS THE ORIGIN OF YOUR FASCINATION. FORCED ENTERTAINMENT PROPOSES A GAME, A SIMPLE ONE, AS SIMPLE AS A FARY TALE TOLD BY EIGHT KINGS AND QUEENS: MEN AND WOMEN DISGUISED IN COSTUMES AS IN A GAME. THEY ARE PLAYING FOR US, AND WITH US. THEY ARE TRANSFORMING A PERFORMANCE INTO AN EXPERIENCE. THEY STAYED FOR 6 HOURS ON THOSE CHAIRS TELLING US STORIES CREATED BY THEIR IMAGINATION ON THAT EXACT NIGHT. THEY DO NOT KNOW A TEXT BY HEART. THEY ARE JUST THERE: PLAYING A GAME: IN FRONT OF US, NOT HIDING THAT SOMETIMES THEY ARE TIRED, BORED AND SLEEPY. AND WE FEEL THE FREEDOM OF EXPRESSING THE SAME THINGS: WE SLEEP, GO OUT, COME IN. AND WITH A TALE INTO A TALE INTO A TALE INTO A TALE, AS IN THE THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS, FORCED ENTERTAINMENT CREATES ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING NIGHTS THAT YOU AND I HAVE EVER LIVED IN A THEATRE. THE SAME CAN BE SAID ABOUT TIM ETCHELLS’ INSTRUCTIONS FOR FORGETTING: HE SHARED STORIES AND VIDEOS SENT BY HIS RELATIVES AND FRIENDS, AND IN A STRANGE METAMORPHOSIS REALITY BECOMES FICTION AND VICEVERSA. TIM IS A STORYTELLER, AN INCREDIBLE ONE. HIS VOICE IS THERE IN ORDER TO BE INHABITED BY THE STORIES OF OTHERS, HIS VOICE IS A BRIDGE BETWEEN THE STORIES AND THE AUDIENCE. YOU KNOW THAT YOU COULD STAY CENTURIES HEARING TIM TELLING THOSE STORIES. HONESTY IS THE WORD. AND THE SAME CAN BE SAID ABOUT GOAT ISLAND’S PERFORMANCE. THEY ARE THERE EXPOSING THEIR OWN AND PERSONAL WAYS OF LOOKING AT THE WORLD, THEY DEVELOP A DIFFI/CULT PERFORMANCE, THEY SPEAK TO US IN AN ABSTRACT WAY AND, PARADOXICALLY, THEY USE THEIR BODIES IN ORDER TO EXPRESS ABSTRACT SUBJECTS. THEY LOOK INTO DIFFERENT AND VARIOUS WAYS OF POISONING, THEY GUIDE US ONTO THE DEEPEST SEA, THEY BECOME HAMLET AND HIS POISONED PREDECESSOR, THEY CAN EXPLAIN TO US HOW IT IS POSSIBLY TO HAVE A FROG RAIN (I MEAN A RAIN OF FROGS) ON STAGE. THEY CAN SPEAK ABOUT BEAUTY AND FUTILITY USING THE TEXTS OF A SOAP COMMERCIAL SPOT. THE BODIES OF THE COMPANY ARE ORDINARY BODIES, THEY SHOW US THEIR IMPERFECTIONS, THEIR WEAKNESS, THEIR LIGHTNESS AND THEIR WEIGHT. THEY ARE NOT PUSHING THE PERFORMANCE; THEY ARE JUST EXPOSING THEIR BODIES TO THE IRRESISTIBLE FORCE OF THE STAGE. THEY TRACE A SPACE WITHIN A SPACE; THEY ARE BUILDING A CATALOGUE OF POISONS AS LARGE AND VAST AS THE SEA. THEY CAN PLAY WITH THE WORDS AND DECIDE THAT POISON CAN BE POISSON (IN FRENCH) AND THEN THEY HAVE THE SEA. OR JUST BECAUSE THE POISON CAN BE DISOLVED IN WATER THEY WANT TO SPEAK ABOUT THE SEA... OR JUST BECAUSE... AFTER SUN IS THE SHOW OF AN ANGRY MAN. RODRIGO GARCIA (WRITER AND DIRECTOR) CREATES A MAGNIFICENT PERFORMANCE THAT SPEAKS ABOUT THEATRE. TWO INCREDIBLE ACTORS LEAD THE PERFORMANCE: PATRICIA LAMAS AND JUAN LORIENTE. THE POINT OF DEPARTURE IS THE MYTH OF PHAETON ACCORDING TO OVIDE . THE WHOLE PERFORMANCE IS A NUMBER OF VARIATIONS CONCERNING THIS MYTH. THE IDEA OF CRASHING OR THE DESIRE TO CONTROL THINGS THAT WE LACK THE ABILITY TO CONTROL: A COUNTRY FOR EXAMPLE, A FAMOUS LIFE, THEATRE ITSELF... PHAETON WANTS THE SUN CHARIOT. HE IS NOT ABLE TO CONTROL IT. HE CRASHES INTO THE WORLD BRINGING DEATH AND DESTRUCTION. GARCIA IS NOT USING THE MYTH AS A METAPHOR, HE IS JUST SAYING THAT WE ARE MAKING THEATRE IN THE SAME WAY AS PHAETON ATTEMPTED TO DRIVE “HIS” CHARIOT. THE MYTH “HIDES” ALSO A BEAUTIFUL IDEA CONCERNING PARENTHOOD: PHAETON DOUBTS THE IDENTITY OF HIS FATHER, THE SUN. THE SUN DECIDES TO PROVE TO HIS SON THAT HE IS, INDEED, HIS FATHER. FOR THAT HE ASKED PHAETON TO MAKE A WISH. HE WILL TRY TO FULFILL IT. THE TRAP IS THERE: THE SON WANTS THE ATTRIBUTE OF HIS FATHER: THE CHARIOT, THE SON WANTS TO BE HIS FATHER, AND THERE HE GOES: DIRECTLY TO HIS OWN DEATH. AFTER SUN IS ALSO A STATEMENT ON THEATRE. IS AN ARS POETICA OF PERFORMANCE. GARCIA IS ANGRY ABOUT ALMOST EVERYTHING AND HE SHOWS IT OPENLY, WIDELY AND FREELY. THE PERFORMANCE IS THERE IN ORDER TO BE KILLED BY THE AUDIENCE. THIS IS WHAT WE THINK, THEY SAY. THERE IS NO WAY OF MISUNDERSTANDING: TAKE US OR LEAVE US. THERE IS NO THIRD CHOICE. AND THE SAME CAN BE SAID ON RABIH MROUÉ AND ELIAS KHOURY’S PERFORMANCE: THREE POSTERS WORKS WITH FICTION AND REALITY IN AN OPEN AND BEAUTIFUL WAY. ALL THE PAIN AND THE SUFFERING, ALL THE STRENGTH AND COURAGE ARE IN THE PERFORMANCE. MISE EN ABÎME OF DIFFERENT SUBJECTS. THE EFFECT OF REALITY IS ALWAYS COUNTERPOINTED BY FICTION. RABIH IS THE SOLDIER THAT COMMITED SUICIDE, AND THEN BECOMES RABIH AND THEN A WITNESS WHO SEE THE REAL (?) VIDEO WITH THE DISCOURSE BEFORE THE SUICIDE AND THEN RABIH RE ENTERS THE FICTION IN ORDER TO DISMANTLE IT. HE IS ALWAYS DENYING AND ADDING WHAT WE HAVE JUST SEEN. REALITY IS CONSTRUCTED WITH FICTION AND VICEVERSA. THE MOST INCREDIBLE THING ABOUT THIS PERFORMANCE IS... May I come in? May I say something? Can we say this together? SO, YOU AGREE FINALLY. I’ve been listening to you, and I have to say that my dark side is part of me again, I don’t feel this struggle any longer. BUT THIS IS NOT A GOOD THING. I’m not sure. A tension is over. Honesty is the word for understanding. You are saying that the most incredible thing in this performance is that everything seems to be so simple... and that way of seeing things, that simple way of developing an idea is what makes the performance so complex. Another paradox here. Rabih’s performance is always on the edge, you will never know which is the border between reality and fiction, but on the other hand you do really know the difference. You feel it for a while and then you loose it. It’s a perfect construction. A building made with honesty. AND that is THE WORD that will accompany US from now on. I CAME HERE A MONTH AGO fearing about the success of my work, TRYING TO ANSWER POLITELY ALL THE QUESTIONS. I know now that THE ONLY WAY OF UNDERSTAND THEATRE NOWADAYS IS dealing with reality, GETTING involved IN THE MUD AND THE HORROR, and always trying to look for the truth (whether it is wrong or not / fake or not / theatrical or not / fictional or not). TRUTH AND honesty ARE THE keyWORDS for understanding. KunstenFESTIVALdesArts is FINISHING NOW and there is a conclusion waiting for us: There is no way out. We are not on stage for a masturbating act, that which takes place between two people. We are not the chosen ones. There is urgency. The world is collapsing let’s shout together, we have not much time. There is no time for re-presentation. Forget all that! It is time for presentation. It is time to understand the statement: theatre is here as an instrument, forget the “entertainment” thing, we are in the middle of a war and we should use this weapon in order to understand the war. There is no more time for fiction. And if we die by poisoning, And that’s the choice. Thanks for being there. Alejandro Tantanian |
|
|
1.UNPACKING’S ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: 2.Do you remember this? 3.We can also talk of other tensions at Zuidpool’s BRITANNICUS: the cold, symmetric and clean set is the location where the bleeding tragedy takes place, a clean place to be filled with imaginary blood; the actors are dressed with contemporary clothes and everyone carries a wig: Racinian ones: the tension is also in the bodies: their gestures are those of today, their way of speaking is a seed of Racinian poetry. The characters are carrying the tension between mind and body: thoughts and feelings. Cold blood and passion. Tragedy is taking place just there: in the middle of those things. Tragedy is happening just because there is a tension in the bodies and the language. Michelangelo created a tension between God and Adam’s fingers: there is a space between the fingers: the space for creation. In that gap emerges language. Theatre happens between two loud sounds, theatre happens in the kingdom of silence. 4. It is not “we”, it is “he”: Tiziano is planning to prepare some pasta aglio olio peperoncino. Delicious! 5.MISGUIDED TOUR’S ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|