“戴上耳机,听着指令游览一座城市”,一场特殊的演出就此开始

有人说它是“徐汇区深度游”,但其实创作者想探讨的很多,比如人工智能、集体动态,但这些富有哲思的议题很容易在 2 小时中被淹没。

13.10.2018 /

我们跟导演之一 Anton Rose 进行了交流,你还可以了解更多。

Q:有些元素比如墓地、商场、医院是必备的,除此之外你们如何挑选其他地点?寺庙是中国大陆特有的么?

Anton Rose:我们对每个城市或多或少都有一些确切需求,但我们同样也愿意包含一些特殊地点。上海路线中的这个寺庙毫无疑问是个非常美丽而且有趣的地方,但它并不是我们刻意去寻找的一个寺庙。

Q:您怎样区分“行为艺术”和“纪录剧场”?《遥感城市》的演出形式(听指令行动)可能在很多人看来都像是一场集体行为艺术。

Anton Rose:《遥感城市》确实包括了行为艺术和纪录剧场在其中。但对我而言它是一个混合产物,用到了很多难以去具体分类的元素。

Q:为什么你们选择了一种幽默的方式探讨人工智能、服从或是违背指令这样的话题?

Anton Rose:对我来说幽默是件很重要的事。它可以帮助我们打败无聊和伤心,有些时候它还能帮助我们理解一些问题,为我们和严肃的真实生活之间创造一个有效的距离。

Q:集体与个人的关系同样是你们探讨的,有没有遇到只有 1 位观众的演出?

Anton Rose: 我认为《遥感城市》是关于群体动态的,所以这个群体不能太小。同时我也对创作一部只有 1 名观众的演出很感兴趣。

Q:是通过 GPS 定位,还是现场工作人员有干预?

Anton Rose: 只能透露它包含了技术和一些技巧,当然有一些很困难的工作。

Q:在柏林、台北、莫斯科、纽约等城市,《遥感城市》有不止一个版本,同一个城市的版本区别在哪里?

Anton Rose:理论上来说,任何一个大一点的城市都能有 2 个甚至更多的版本,不过我认为在这些城市,除了一些细小的改变,其实它们的路线是一样的(也就是说并非不同版本,只是演出次数较多)。只有柏林除外,那里有 2 条完全不同的线路。

Q:如果观众们只记得轻松和愉快,没有深入思考那些你想探讨的问题,你会感到遗憾吗?

Anton Rose:我个人在《遥感城市》中置入了很多话题和问题,它们具有启发性而且很重要。所以当我在创作这个项目的时候,我的目的就是用一种有效的方法启发人们反思这些话题。但话虽如此,我还是将真正让人们感到开心视为一个非常大的成就,所以只要大家不感到无聊那就不算太差了。

 

ENGLISH

Interview mit Anton Rose

1.  The pressbook mentions something about “travelling”,but today’s routine is quite normal, otherwise maybe I would experienced Nanjing Road and The Bund, they are all remarkable places in Shanghai. Is it more like exploring the ordinary city we are familiar with?

Yes, I think Remote, among other things, is about discovering a new perspective on places that could be found in almost every city. 

2.  Haiying told me some places are what you required: a tomb, a hospital, a shopping mall……how do you choose other places? (Is the temple the special element in mainland China, so you picked one?)

We do have certain kinds of places that we more or less incorporate in every city. But we also like to include all kinds of special places. The  Longhua temple is obviously a very beautiful and interesting space, but it is not that we where specifically looking for a temple. 

3.  Related to last question, it feels the key point of Remote X is “Remote” for me, how the “X”(city) makes         the play more creative? Or is there anything irreplaceable in some cities?

Remote uses the city as a scenography. Each city is a major source of inspiration. A lot of the general topics of Remote stay the same in every city but it is strongly influenced by each city. 

4.  How do you distinguish Documentary Theater from Performance Art? 

Guidance are guided by instructions from the headphones, and we dance, turn right etc. There definitely are some elements of Documentary Theater and Performance Art in it. But to me Remote is such a hybrid format. It uses so many elements that I have difficulties categorizing it. 

5.  I laughed a lot during 2 hours, not only because of what I heard from headphones, but also because            some audiences are funny. Why do you choose the humorous way to discuss about some serious topics         like artificial intelligence, people obey or disobey the orders ?

To me humor is a very serious thing. it can be used to fight boredom and sadness. and sometimes it even helps us to understand. allowing us to create a productive distance between us and a the serious facts of life. So i hope some of your laughing was kind of productive (laughs).

6.  We have around 25 audiences today, half of 50, but still made it like a community. I wonder what will           happen if there is only 1 audience? Have you experienced this situation? How do you think today’s               collective and personal relation?

I think Remote is a lot about group dynamics. So the group can't be too small. At the same time I am very interested in the Idea of creating a similar piece for the audience of one. 

7.  The synthetic voice seems to know everything, even like our speed……it’s so perfect. Is it totally based on GPS or the staff “helps” it a little? 

Haha! Let's just say there is both technique and technology involved. As well as a lot of hard work.

8.The introduction says “As the project tours from city to city, each new site-specific version builds upon the dramaturgy of the previous city.” How do you change it ? In your website, I notice the city before Shanghai is Copenhagen, I couldn’t imagine how it helps Shanghai’s version? (I think maybe Taipei’s version is more helpful)

This is a very close observation! Indeed, the Taipei version was consulted a lot during the production process. But also Copenhagen, Lima, Denver and Jerusalem among others. I think there are more than 40 versions by nowm and the piece is constantly evolving. The inspiration sometimes lies in completely different cities. 

9. In some cities like Berlin, Taipei, Moscow, New York, it runs more than once, what’s the difference in one city ? (different areas, different routines or something else ? )

I think theoretically in every bigger city there could be two or more different Versions. But I think apart from minor changes the route stayed the same in those places.  With the exception of Berlin, where there were two completely different routes.

10. Haiying told me you have planned make a version in another area in Shanghai, what are the new ideas        and elements ?

Maybe that was a misunderstanding. I don't know about that. But as I said, theoretically it could be done.

11. What do you want the audience get from Remote Shanghai ? If they just remember the happy time but       not think too much about the modern problems you want to discuss, would you feel disappointed?

I personally find a lot of the topics and questions that are being asked in Remote, inspiring and important. So when I work on the project, my aim is to create an experience that inspires people to reflect on these topics in a hopefully productive way. That being said, I consider it quite an achievement to actually entertain people. So as long as they are not just bored it's not too bad.

 


Projects

Remote X