Song

This ‘sense around’ experience can be enjoyed against the wall, on a stool, or, on your own piece of astroturf placed anywhere on the beautifully polished Town Hall floor.  It is a very individual experience that doubtless many participants have reveled or will revel in, in the next few days.

It is so often what frame of mind one brings to theatre, that colours the experience, and can enhance with piquancy and assist in the suspension disbelief.  Exhausted at the end of a long week I was looking forward to something immersive and magical.  And, initially, I responded to Song with as much generosity as I could muster to find myself strangely transported to my sometime, misspent youth – imbuing me with the feeling of being totally stoned and lying heavily on the grass with a heightened awareness to my natural surroundings. 

A solid and interesting starting point I thought. But sadly not a place I was able to freely maneuver from with the limited resources at my disposal. 

Songis an intense experience that makes weighty demands on its audience as it separates out the senses. What one has most to work with is sound (David Franzke), sounds from nature as well as songs simply sung with a guitar and then piano (James Tyson). There are also smells (Perfumer – George Kara) and air movement and a large round white object and some falling water.  Although initial smells are light and pleasant they are almost all somehow synthetic, and, except perhaps in the early stages, do not necessarily relate to the sounds.

Overall there is little to look at, other than other audience members.  To start with this is unmediated and not particularly comfortable though as the event moves on lighting (Stephen Hennessy) states change. I was expecting projected images. In a world that is so dominated and informed by the image it feels strange to do without them. And for me the strongest messages from Song are just how dependent I have become on visual stimuli and how discomforting and disconcerting it can be to separate out and isolate ones own senses.

A worthwhile adventure in theatre-making and interesting journey as participant.

Suzanne Sandow

Photographer: Ponch Hawkes