At this year's Athlone Literary Festival (Oct 5th - 7th) MakingSpace produced a one act play, entitled 'Interruption', written and directed by Martin Kelleher, featuring Martina Dolan, Sam Sutton, Jason Gill, Grainne Moore and Martin himself.
An unsuspecting audience arrived at The Passionfruit Theatre for what they believed was to be an hour of poetry and prose reading. However, after Jason Gill had finished his flash fiction story and had left the stage, and Martin Kelleher proceded with several short prose pieces, he was interrupted by a woman (Martina Dolan), apparently his ex-girlfriend, who objected to his using material from their short-lived romance.
Of course, the interruption itself had been part of the performance. It had been rehearsed for weeks coming up to the event, and had caught the audience unawares, as had been its design.
The concept hinged upon the contract of expectation into which audiences enter with performers and the grey areas between reality and fiction and the audience's swing of perception as it is caught between the two. Such a swing was designed by this concept to be an organic part of the performance itself. The very moment, however fractional, between what is natural ('real') and what is rehearsed, does not make the performance fakery but true, as the performers and audience need each other in a way which differs from that ordinarily perceived distance between theatre-goers and a show.
In this case, 'Interruption' and its performers were depending on the audience's participation without asking for it, and gladly the audience not only obliged but were highly appreciative and gracious in their reception.
MakingSpace is indebted to the contributions of Jason, Grainne, and in particular to Martina Dolan for her hours of dedication in the making possible of 'Interruption'. The Passionfruit Theatre is also to be congratulated for its support. Sam Sutton, a permanent member of MakingSpace Athlone, made his acting debut as the disgruntled boyfriend. Martin Kelleher is also a permanent member of MakingSpace.
An unsuspecting audience arrived at The Passionfruit Theatre for what they believed was to be an hour of poetry and prose reading. However, after Jason Gill had finished his flash fiction story and had left the stage, and Martin Kelleher proceded with several short prose pieces, he was interrupted by a woman (Martina Dolan), apparently his ex-girlfriend, who objected to his using material from their short-lived romance.
Of course, the interruption itself had been part of the performance. It had been rehearsed for weeks coming up to the event, and had caught the audience unawares, as had been its design.
The concept hinged upon the contract of expectation into which audiences enter with performers and the grey areas between reality and fiction and the audience's swing of perception as it is caught between the two. Such a swing was designed by this concept to be an organic part of the performance itself. The very moment, however fractional, between what is natural ('real') and what is rehearsed, does not make the performance fakery but true, as the performers and audience need each other in a way which differs from that ordinarily perceived distance between theatre-goers and a show.
In this case, 'Interruption' and its performers were depending on the audience's participation without asking for it, and gladly the audience not only obliged but were highly appreciative and gracious in their reception.
MakingSpace is indebted to the contributions of Jason, Grainne, and in particular to Martina Dolan for her hours of dedication in the making possible of 'Interruption'. The Passionfruit Theatre is also to be congratulated for its support. Sam Sutton, a permanent member of MakingSpace Athlone, made his acting debut as the disgruntled boyfriend. Martin Kelleher is also a permanent member of MakingSpace.