Launceston Discussion Event: Iteration: Again at Sawtooth ARI. "Two Houses" speech

A CAST event at Sawtooth ARI, 160 Cimitiere St, Launceston, 

6pm Thursday 22 September, 2011

"Iteration:Again is a series of thirteen public art commissions by twenty-two Australian and international artists taking place across Tasmania, September 18 – October 15, 2011. Produced by CAST and David Cross, in conjunction with seven associate curators, Iteration:Again will present a compelling array of temporary artworks in largely unexpected places throughout Hobart, Launceston and beyond.

CAST presents an evening of Iteration:Again discussions at Sawtooth ARI. Participants include: Iteration:Again Curatorial Director, David Cross, Wellington, NZ; Our Day WIll Come curator Fiona Lee, Hobart; Two Houses artist, Voice Theatre Lab’s Rob Lewis, Launceston; and I Live With Birds curator Fernando do Campo."

Discussions regarding our involvement in the project began months ago, and it was quite a challenge for us as a company because this was going to be our first site specific, outdoor performance.

Voice Theatre Lab have been researching methods of vocal and physical synthesis since 2006, and since then have produced 7 productions. Our main focus is combining various non-conventional Eastern performance practices with Western contexts. Two Houses is a good example of how we have used these concepts – combining very strong Butoh training and performance aesthetics with a very Western text as a base: Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

The performance has many layers, and I will briefly speak about my experience as conceptual and performance director, and performer. There are 2 main aspects of Two Houses: the performance, and the recorded soundscape.

The show

The narrative aspects of the production(s) itself inexplicitly follow Romeo and Juliet, not in a logical sense, but more of a figurative, conceptual sense. There are 5 overall iterations of Two Houses. The first 4 cover some key elements and emotions: 1) Conflict and Anger; 2) Unity and Love; 3) Betrayal and Jealousy; 4) Death and Sadness. The 5^th and final iteration sees all these come together as one performance.

The performers are attached by red elastic to Henty House and Macquarie House, in Civic Square, Launceston. Two ‘Romeo’s’ are together at Henty House and the two ‘Juliet’s’ are at the opposite end at Macquarie House. The elastic is red, which simbolises the blood ties to each house; the conflict being present in the tension felt within their bodies (and voices) the further each character moves away from their houses. Each iteration (which is each performance) shows different actions that relate to the element and emotion.

The body

The physical aspects are inspired by Butoh dance – being connected to the ground, idea of emptiness, and expression of internal imagery which is determined by the blood ties to the houses, emotions, inner conflict and physicality of the other performer (in the form of Pretzeling).

The voice   

The vocal elements are also an important aspect of the iterations. Each week sees a different way of using the voice, including breath, per-verbal expressions and postverbal expressions (where the word has been intentionally fragmented).

The soundscape

2 speakers have been mounted in the windows of Macquarie House. After each performance, the sounds build. Each week sees a different part of the Romeo and Juliet text. Using a piece of text: Conflict and Anger is represented by breath, Unity and Love is expressed through vowels alone, Betrayal and Jealousy through consonants and Death and Sadness through preverbal expressions of chosen text.   

The experience

As a performer, you are immersed in the immediate environment. In a sense, nothing matters – you feel sweat, mucus, saliva – but you cannot stop and wipe it away or adjust your costume. Nothing matters but just that given moment. You feel the breeze, see litter fly past and even perhaps allow the spectators to walk in front of you or  sense their gaze at the corner of your eye. You must, however, only concentrate on your intention – on your iteration. The space is always there with each performance, but with slight changes in the environment – the space and the happenings in and around it are the iterations itself. In a sense, the space between these two buildings – and all that occur between them (performance, pedestrians, vehicles and the sound), are all part of the process and experience. 

With David Cross, Curator, at the discussion event

Revised - Two Houses Movement

1 Conflict/Anger

Action

4 performers are wrapped in their own elastic on their poles.

2 Romeo’s together, 2 Juliet’s together – partnered.

Slow unravel to meet partner in the centre of their poles.

Begin to Pretzel very slowly with the inside arms.

Neutral mask. Outside arms reach back to their ‘houses’.

Slow walk, while Pretzeling to meet in the centre.

Walk 1 – normal centered walk with breath

Walk 2 – “up, down, slide” stomp with vocal terrain/vocal flocking

Walk 3 – Extended walk focused forwards with full text

Neutral mask slowly transforms into mask of anger.

Anger mask grows to extreme in the centre.

Romeo’s and Juliet’s hold each other’s arms.

Anger towards their own houses.

Yearning towards each other – drop mask of anger

The energy of their houses slowly draws them back to their poles.

Using same walk as used to reach centre

Silence.

Mask of anger transforms to neutral.

Wind themselves and elastic together.

Reach back to houses

Stillness.

Voice

Vocal flocking: the physical movements determine quality of the sound. Vocal dynamics, energies and actions are also determined by the physicality. Sound is vital, not the textual meaning.

Romeo: More light and light it grows, more dark and dark our woes!

Juliet: What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

2 Unity/Love

Both sets of R&J's, in a frozen state expressing their internal image, are facing each other in the centre.

They are connected to their houses and to their opposites by their wrists with red elastic.

One pair of R&J's move apart - J is the kite and R responds physically and vocally, using text (go through text twice). They walk back to the centre.

The other pair repeat the process, but R is the kite and J (use text once) responds. They walk back to the centre.

All walk out, diagonal R&J's act as kites.

What results is:

A tangled wed of movements that the center of the space controls:

Carefully controlled slow movements, which are balanced out with opposing tensions;

Patterns are made with the elastic:

This scene pre-empts the tragedy that is to unfold.

All walk back to the centre.

Repeat the process but with other pair as kites.

The dominating image is light, and every manifestation of it, especially when referencing love and unity.

The centre ‘conducts’ R&J (Invisible String).

The vocals are affected by the movements/gestures of spaces in between the performers.

A performance of physical and vocal flocking occurs – north, east, southwest will be explored.

Voice

During the flocking, these texts will be spoken. Breath, gasps, creaks and aspirate sounds.

Juliet: Take [Romeo] and cut him out into little stars,

And he will make the face of heaven so fine

That all the world will be in love with night

And pay no worship to the garrish sun.

Romeo: I must be gone and live, or stay and die (x2)

3 Betrayal/Jealousy

Action

One pair of R&J’s (diagonal) move to the centre.

They move around each other twice to create a loop with the elastic.

They meet their ‘other half’.

The other pair repeat the action.

What occurs are a few moments of ‘Swipe’ with ‘Elastic’.

They are being pulled and pushed by their energies.

Not making any eye contact – a feeling of contempt.

An emotional line from 0% – 100% expressing the emotion of jealousy.

Voice

Texts during the Swipe, together in unison:

Romeo and Juliet: Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,

Who is already sick and pale with grief

That thou her maid art far more fair than she.

Be not her maid, since she is envious.

4 Death/Sadness

Action

R&J move to the centre, they are being pulled to the centre by an unseen force.

They face away from the centre, towards their own houses

In the centre: Gargoyles with emotions of sadness and death.

Heads down: each speak a word of text 1

Heads up: silence with mask of sadness

Heads down: each speak a word of text 2. Both J “Montague” Both R “Capulet”

Heads up: silence with mask of death

Repeat until line is complete. Each time getting faster and more frantic

Juliette’s move back towards their house and die a slow death as they attempt to reach their home. Pretzeling

Romeo’s reach to their Juliette’s and slowly fall to the ground.

Voice

All speak the following texts. Each person expresses one aspect of the text:

- Breath

-Vowels

- Consonants

-Physical expression of the images the text possesses

Text 1: Greif that foils the anger.

Text 2: Where be these enemies? Capulet! Montague!

Two Houses - Costume

For the retelling of the great love story ever told, we have decided to wear white shirts, white fisherman's pants and Japanese Jika-tabi for shoes.

In Western Culture, the colour white has a significance in symbolism as it is the colour of purity, innocence and cleanness, and very often within a religious context, Whereas in Chinese and Indian tradition, white is the color of mourning and death. White has also, throughout history, been linked to someone or something being "good". Two prime examples of this are; "healing magic" is known as White Magic, and the white dove being a symbol of peace. One can also see a good example of black and white depicting good and evil in the Taoism symbol Ying and Yang.

We chose white for all of the above reasons and as well as the fact that white is easily marked and stained. Since the story of Romeo and Juliet is an epic struggle, we thought what better way to represent that struggle, besides from the physical struggles the performers will be going through, than having their clothing becoming more ratty and stained as the installation goes on.

Jika-tabi are modeled on the traditional Japanese tabi. Like traditional tabi, jika-tabi have a divided toe area so that they can in theory be worn with slip-on thonged footwear, but they are heavy-duty, have a rubber sole and resemble boots. We chose jika-tabi because of the Butoh work the performers are undertaking and because of the fact that they are lightweight, so easy to move in, but still offer the wearer's feet some protection.

Exercises

Here is a list of some of our exercises to date:

General warm ups                                                                                                                   

Settling the Breath                                                                                                                                                                                       

Body/Breath Connection: Pairs                                                                            

Body/Voice Connection: Pairs                                                                              

‘Disappearance’                                 

Breath, Sound and Movement Connection                                                        

Body/Breath/Voice Continuum    

                                                                          

EXTERNAL IMAGERY

The Invisible String                                                                                                

Running on Various Surfaces                                                                              

The Kite   

Conversational Kites

Tracks                                                                                                                  

Kite: With Physical Crisis 1                                                                                               

Kite: With Physical Crisis 2                                                                                               

External Image Reactions 1                                                                                  

External Image Reactions 2                                                                                  

INTERNAL IMAGERY

Butoh-Fu                                                                                                                   

Central Imaging                                                                                                       

Omni Central Imaging                                                                                            

Containment of an Internal Image Within the Body                              

Passing the Sound                                                                                               

Flies                                                                                                                           

Reaching 

Gargoyles                                                                                                                  

EMOTIONS                                                                                              

The Emotional Line                                                                                                            

Expression of Mask, Voice and Primary Emotions                                    

Moments of Breath/Action/Voice Using Emotion                                              

TRANSFORMATIONS

Sound Transformations                                                                                         

The Space Between: Transformations and the Internal Image                     

Vocal Transitions and the Internal Image                                                                      

CONTRADICTIONS

The Mask and Contradicting Sounds                                                                  

Contradicting Emotions                                                                                         

Contradictions and Butoh-Fu        

SEQUENCING

Use of voice and speech in motion, and in static/statue poses

5 Crisis Positions (voice and speech in transitions, voice and speech in statues)

Rising 1

Rising 2

Falling 1

Falling 2

Rolling

Crawling

WALKS

Slow

Bow - Front

Bow - Back

Sideways

FLOCKING

Physical 

Vocal

Physio-Vocal

GEOLOGY

With central person

With objects

With each other 

With all of the above

Exhalation/vocalisation in leaving destination 

Internal breath/vocalisations on approaching destination

SOME NOTES ON THE GEOLOGY EXERCISE

Punctuation

• The validity and the physicalisation of the punctuation within the text.
• Not walking in straight lines turning at each punctuation point – rather it is an extension of that, it takes it to another realm.
• It connects punctuation to specific focus points, these may be human, inanimate, or even imagined.

Breath

• Breath (inspiration – dropping in the thought) – line (voice and action) – reaction and the cycle continues (breath – dropping in the next thought when moving to the next destination).
• The person in the middle instigates the line of dialogue, which then inspires the people/person surrounding him/her to ‘inhale’ the line.
• When the person in the middle says one line (up to the punctuation point), the others inhale that line and when they have inhaled that line completely (the length of the breath will determine the length of the line and thought).

Destination

• Destination changes the way in which you deal with the next thought.

Volume

• The words 'loud' and 'soft' and all the variations in between may instil a negative feeling.
• Soft (can make the person be vocally quiet) “speak softly…quiet down…don’t make too much noise”.
• Opposite to that: loud. Speak louder may straing the voice.
• 0 – 100 in an obvious gage, with about 20 or 30 being that of conventional conversational volume.

CORE CENTRIC EXERCISES AND SEQUENCING

These sequencing exercises are a combination of sitting, lying and rolling positions 

which are: sitting - V-Pull, Reverse V-Pull; lying - Reverse V-Pull, Static hold – Facing 

Up, Static Hold – facing Down, rolling -  Forward Roll, Roll Up. Moving actions are not 

explored because the purpose of the sequencing is to explore the idea of shifting from 

one still position to another in space and time. There is no problem in terms of moving 

into any of these positions from walking, as long as you are precise about the moves and follows their centre at all times. The idea is to be creative and do what works best for you.

Any combination of moves can be explored. It is best for the director/leader to call out the positions so you know where you are going. After a while, these positions become engrained in the body, so what the instruction is called to move, or a beat is heard, you instinctively know to move on impulse to any position. For example, here is a sequence that may be explored:

Start in a V-Pull position.

3 beats - hold.

3 beats – move into a Static Hold – Facing Down position.

3 beats – hold.

3 beats – move into a Reverse V-Pull position.

3 beats – hold.

3 beats – move into a Static Hold – Facing Down position.

3 beats – hold.

And so on, until the instructor calls out ‘speak’, in which you would speak your learnt text in that particular position.

The ‘beats’ may be literal, for example beating on a drum, or they may be imaginary ‘imagine 3 beats of a drum’, or ‘3 counts to the movement or holds’. It’s important to savor those 3 beats as you move into position, and on the third count you must be in that position. The critical aspect is how you get there, not where you arrive. If you do not completely end up in that position, remain still and focused.