Thoughts for Performing Earth...

There is a slogan for ‘Performing Earth’ which is;
“In performance there is no such thing as a rich or poor country, every country is rich in culture…”

I believe this slogan defines the ethos behind what I am trying to achieve, in both the Korean schools as well as anywhere else I end up travelling with the project to.
The slogan is particularly relevant in relation to Korea, a nation undergoing an extended period of dramatic change, where modern infrastructure meets old tradition. However both sides of Korea, both modern and old, are key in defining the nations’ culture, which is of course of great value to the performing artist. From the traditional market streets of my place of residence this year, Gwangju, Gyeonggi-Do, to the high rise modern structures of Myeong-Dong, Korea is producing a fluid circle of culture, which is embedded into the heartbeat of ‘Asia’s best kept secret.’


‘Performing Earth’

I see it as invaluable to document these travels and experiences of performance. It is essentially a combination of travels and truths, truths that enable us to try and assess what our understanding of this fluid art of ‘performance’ is. Indeed in each country there are things to learn, thought provoking issues and cultures, different ideas and mentalities. It is sometimes impossible to include these in the space of a small two hour workshop, but the hope is that they can at least be a learning experience, and in some way help form and shape the concepts during the travelling performance work.
Other than Korea, although no official direct workshop took place there, it is Hong Kong that provided one of the most vivid performance experiences which had a direct
connection to the culture and tradition of the people.
Upon arrival in Hong Kong it was around 6am in the morning and modern Hong Kong
was waking up. Skyscraper buildings, machinery, and computer operated devices were
all key to the smooth running of this seemingly technologically driven metropolis. Then what did I find at the middle of it, but one of the most traditional performance
experiences one will ever find. A typical Hong Kong park, not too dissimilar to those you would find in central London or Manchester, or any kind of large UK city. But what did I find at its’ centre, one of the most true performance art activities I believe I will ever find.
The local Hong Kong residents fully engaged in their morning practice of Thai-Chi style movement, every small motion so precise and telling a story in itself. No lapses in concentration, and not even an eyelid blinked at the awareness of my presence, an everyday western man stood at the centre of one of the most prominent art forms of the far east.
Indeed this was not an isolated incident on my travels, the journey to Australia brought me into contact with the Aboriginal art form, again an experience unto itself, stood on Sydney harbour front dwarfed by a colossal man who would demonstrate hundreds of years of history in one simple blow on his overtly large tuba-like object. It is in these moments, just a split second, that a fragment of performance can be captured which stimulates my next idea or workshop for a class either at Kyeongan Elementary School, or anywhere else I end up going in the world. It could even be that these experiences influence the next script that I write for the students, as was the case when I ran a festival with them in Seoul. At this festival the students performed ‘In the Jungle’, a play I made myself as a result of my experience with the Aborigine man I met and saw performing in Sydney. In fact the soundtrack was his music that I had negotiated a price for when buying his CD.

This was a prime example of when something I have seen has influenced my own work.
Because I am working with students, this experience then indirectly influences them
also, as essentially I am teaching from my experiences, and feeding this knowledge or
ideas to others. I think the whole ‘Performing Earth’ project, together with working a school abroad is also central to this learning experience. It is something that I hope will help shape my work as I get older and enable me to improve and develop both as an actor and instructor.