Performance Idea
After having weeks of trouble with coming up with an idea for solo performance i have finally settled on a idea that i am excited about. Some may say its a bit personal but everyone can relate or take something from the idea i have. It all started when i was having trouble thinking of an idea for a 5 minute solo presentation for the next class, a fellow student interrogated me into thinking about colours and atmospheres i want to create. I finally decided that i wanted to create a performance which challenged and questions the relationship between the performer and audience. Also, to challenge my self and open to the audience about why i can’t get close to people. The idea developed and i wanted to do a piece on closeness and explore how i find it difficult to get close to someone, whether it being in relationships with the opposite sex, or just with strangers and friends in general. I will show this by using colour, music and other forms of media. The composition of this performance needs to be right in order to pull this performance off.
The Performance Space
Thinking about the performance space ia sked myself a question; How do i make the performance space intimate for a one to one performance? The set up of the space is influenced by Marina Abromović’s performance The Artist is Present (2010). I want the Studio to be made smaller and create a booth or a corridor with just a table and two chairs opposite eachother. Within this set up i want a camera behind me filming the opposite chair where the audience member will sit. A question raised whilst developing this idea; How will i make the space intimate whilst still allowing light? I would start and end each performance with the audience member with either a blackout or a white wash, something that is neutral.
Mood and Colours
Following this i then began to think of colours and mood and what colours reflect what mood i felt towards a certain person. For example, The colour Red i assosiate this with danger or love depending on the intensity of the colour. Love would be soft and light as Danger would be intense and sharp. I want to play with the idea of colours and what they represent, to me with how i felt about the person [audience member]. In the performance i would like a section of colours in the performance space and create a colour wheel with colours that compliment and contrast eachother, so that i can play with and express my feelings and moods. In the performance i want control the lights and change them for each audience member depending on my feelings and closeness i have towards them. However, i have to be truthful as the performance wouldn’t be real and honnest if i lied to please each audience member.
Colour Wheel
Credit: Will Kemp [online]
Music and Media
Adding to the composition and dynamic of the performance i want to add in music to the performance to maybe contradict or compliment the mood/atmosphere/feelings. Exploring this idea i question the music that would be appropriate for this performance. As a result of this i would want classical music as it has no set interpretation and doesn’t tell people how to feel. The use of music fills the space as i want to mask the awkward silence.
Following this, as mentioned earlier in the blog i wanted a camera placed behind me which is focused on the audience member and their reaction to me. I would like this camera to be livestreamed onto the Televisions in Zing in order to make the private performance in the studio public for another set audience. As well as the live streaming video i want to provide the audience with a set of headphones which they can chanel into the studio, so they can also channel into the music as well.
The Performance
The narritive of the performance is that i would like it to be durational which would last at maxumimum 2hours, giving the audience a specific time slot to be one to one with me. When the audience member has entered the performance they would be greeted with a fairly neutral light. However, as soon as they sit i would change the colours to compliment or contrast the person in the chair, with my mood and feelings towards them. Following this i would have two pieces of paper on the table which states “I don’t feel close to you because…” and the other saying “I could feel closer to you now because…”. After the lights have been set i would write on the first one and present the audience member with it. After this i would make eye contact with them for the rest of their alloted time, when their time has ran out and the lighting goes back to neutral i would write on the other piece of paper with a response to “I could feel closer to you now because…” and intruct them to pin it up outside the corridor/booth i have created. I would also pin up my first responses on the inside of the booth to present reasons why i can’t get close to people.
Issues
The issues with this performance idea is that it is very tech heavy and some of the ideas might be impossible to make reality. Also, the performance could have fluidity issues, with the concept of the performance and the actuall running of the performance also. I do not want to confuse the audience, with all the different elements to the performance and the concept also. This performance will change and develop throughout the weeks, but i am feeling very optomistic and excited about this performance.
Work Cited
Kemp, Will (2011) http://willkempartschool.com/beginners-colour-mixing-acrylic-paint/ [online] [accessed 20 February 2014].
