Colin Warren: the blog

I was very fortunate to be able to attend a performance of ‘small metal objects’ by Back to Back Theatre in the local Westfield shopping centre today. It was a very special experience to sit in a tiered bank of seats in the middle of shoppers going about their various activities.

The actors mingled in amongst the people and were miked-up, with us listening in via headphones. It must have looked rather odd for about 100 people to be sitting there with headphones on, and nothing else seeming to happen. At first we could hear the actors and didn’t know where they were and it was a bit weird to sit and listen in a conversation knowing it was for us to hear, but we didn’t know who was speaking. Maybe we didn’t have to know, but once we could see the actors and how they were part of the activity of the shopping centre, it changed the dynamics and became more of a play within a play(s). Once the actors walked into view, they stayed around the vicinity in front of our seating.

People were walking past doing their business, some looking at us, and mostly not knowing that we were listening in on a conversation – a sort of eavesdrop on a one small interaction taking place amongst a whole lot of other things going on. There were people at the ATMs, claiming bonus shopping vouchers, having a coffee, meeting each other, and walking around the actors without knowing that they were also somehow being part of the action.

The play also gave me a perspective on performance, and that there has so be an observer, someone to watch, for the activity to be legitimised. Well, maybe not legitimised, but for it to have meaning outside the performers.

It felt quite profound to be participating in something ‘on the sly’ and struck me that there would be so many of these interaction, conversations, negotiations, etc. going on that we never really know about. We’re usually all too busy to notice or care… An excellent play, and thoroughly enjoyable.