Four weeks into the autumn 2009 term and Production Company have been investigating different types of ‘performance without performers’ or ‘theatre without a theatre’, from exhibitions and installation art to site specific and performance art.
We visited the Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum in London to see their permanent theatre exhibition, which features documents, costumes and model boxes from all types of performance: theatre, pantomime, rock and pop concerts, dance and opera. We also took time to look at two of their temporary exhibitions. ‘Telling Tales: Fantasy and Fear in Contemporary Design’ showed us how ordinary objects can tell strange and fairytale-esque stories and how important it is to ‘stage’ an exhibition – not just display objects. ‘In Praise of Shadows’ – an exhibition of new designs for energy saving lighting - gave us some fantastic ideas about lighting and proved that even something that sounds as dull as an energy saving light bulb, can be turned into something beautiful and fascinating.
We also visited a curious installation called Dennis Severs’ House – part theatre performance, part museum, part time capsule, and part ghost hunt – which really fired up our imaginations about how to create an atmosphere and get your audience involved.
Finally we went to Oxford’s Botanic Gardens to experience Oxford Playhouse’s playout event: ‘Susurrus’. Walking around the gardens, listening to the story and sounds through headphones made us think about the power of sound and the challenge of creating something truly interactive.
These are just some of the Company’s thoughts:
“In an interactive set up – silence is great.” – Louis
We visited Dennis Severs’ House in London and it was like stepping back in time. The house really took us by surprise as there was so much detail in each room. – Thea
“We have been on so many trips. Dennis Severs House was intriguing, Susurrus was eye-opening and the V&A was fantastic, I don’t know where to begin.” – Ruori
The final stage of our research is underway: brainstorming design ideas, thinking about the history we want to tell and delving deep into Oxford Youth Theatre’s past….we’re nearly ready to get our installation designs underway…