experimental theatre

counterclock wise, he said, and voices
robotic and invisible
and she said an experiment? in a theatre?
and nobody on stage?
and he said yes. experimental theatre you might say
and she said without context?
and he said context is merely a word like you and me
and sometimes she said.


context. a simple little word, that; its meaning probably instinctively understood by most human beings, though few of us stop to think about it much on a daily basis.
except for politicians; they seem to have discovered a long time ago its magical properties, for  whenever they land in hot water because of what they have said, they simply blame their troubles on being quoted "out of context"

context, of course, is much more than a convenience for loose-lipped politicians.
truth is, context is a fundamental aspect of our very existence; it embodies our environment, space, social and cultural structures and conventions, the people and the objects with which we are familiar and through which we know - or ought to, anyway - how to behave, what to say, what not to say, what to do, what not to do.

find yourself in an unfamiliar context and you are likely to experience anxiety, confusion, apprehension, fear.
the loss of context for most of us is such an uncomfortable experience that we are not willingly subjecting ourselves to it.

jellyfishjellyfishjellyfish is a theatrical experiment addressing the very experience of loss of context.
it is, however, not a play about this loss , with actors portraying characters on stage, with props, a set, costumes and anything else an experienced theatre-goer might expect to find.
rather than allowing the spectator (voyeur), from the safety and comfort of a comfortable seat in a darkened house to observe characters on a stage  performing the roles of individuals struggling with the loss of context, it is the audience itself that is experiencing this loss.
paraphrasing marshall McLuhan:" the experience is the message"

jellyfishjellyfishjellyfish , whose genesis is my interaction with Alzheimer residents  while I was a recreation therapist with the frail elderly in our local continuing care centre, is a "verbal slide show", a collection of images, fantasies, dreams,  thoughts, memories, impressions bombarding the audience from within.
the stage, though dimly lit, remains naked for the entire 40-minute duration of the show.
six  to eight actors, positioned throughout the house make these verbal slides come to life by speaking , repeating and in other ways uttering words, phrases and sentences.
each actor holds a lit flashlight.

the program   asks anyone wishing to leave prior to the end of the production to do so quietly.
it also reminds them that, while they have the choice to leave, Alzheimer patients do not have that luxury; in fact, when trying to do so, they are often locked in, sedated, or restrained.

in its draft form with a limited cast, jellyfishjellyfishjellyfish was performed at the Edmonton fringe
in august 1994.
the reviewer for a major Edmonton newspaper dubbed the piece "audacious" , adding "without a doubt the least satisfying piece I have seen in 10 years of attending the fringe"
during every performance some audience members left before the performance had ended.