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Chain ReACTion.
Devised and
presented by Rebus Theatre at Questacon. Japan Theatre. May 28 2022 at 2 p.m.
and 7 p.m.
Reviewed by Peter Wilkins
Following on from its highly
successful interactive theatre piece What
If Scientists Ruled The World. Rebus Theatre , Canberra’s own theatre
company for mixed ability people, has created a new interactive work, Chain ReACTion that was presented in Questacon’s
Japan Theatre. The performance that focuses on the issue of chemical
contamination is a piece of Forum Theatre that invites an audience to consider the
issues and social, political and economic consequences of chemical
contamination in the workplace and in the community.
Forum Theatre was created by
Brazilian theatre director, Augusto Boal as an aspect of his Theatre of the Oppressed. Boal regarded
audience members as “spectactors”. That is they were invited to be active
participants in solving problems, empowering the oppressed and effecting social
change. Actors would present a short performance and then invite the audience
to ask questions, identify possibilities for change and replace a performer on
the stage in order to present their possible solution to the conflict or
dilemma. Boal would act as the facilitator or as he termed it The Joker and he
would direct the process.
This is the convention adopted by
Rebus Theatre to explore the issue of the impact of a fictional chemical
compound, Nastoid, that may have been responsible for the deaths of three
children from kidney failure as a result of the existence of Nastoids in
products produced by the Thing a me bob factory in the country town of Petersville.
The danger has come to light as a result of a newspaper article that has
released the fact that the scientific creation of the compound has resulted in
toxic elements being released.
Rebus has constructed a life and death situation that begs a host of questions in search of answers. Responsibility, accountability and open honest communication are placed under the theatrical microscope. Davison’s performance as the distraught parent in search of answers is particularly compelling, and the human face of this potentially deadly scientific discovery immediately commits the audience to get to the bottom of the situation. Clinch expertly navigates their participation, directing their questions, inviting their comments and enabling them to see different versions of the performance play out as they try to arrive at solutions. Each performance will vary according to the audience’s suggestions and requests. The actors need to be flexible enough to adapt to different versions or additional scenes in order to provide sufficient evidence for informed decisions to be made. Forum theatre at its best is more than entertaining. It is empowering and a highly effective agent of change.
Six actors and an Auslan interpreter, Brett, occupy the stage. Professor Theo (Phil Dooley) asks the science communicator Fiona (Dr.Johanna Howes) to prepare a media release on his new discovery at very short notice. She releases the findings to a journalist (Linda Chen) and the report goes viral and comes to the attention of the Mayor of Petersville (Joel Swadling) who invites the science communicator to address the community in the presence of Bruce, the CEO of the factory (Phil Dooley) and Stephan (Robin Davidson), a worker at the factory and the father of one of the children who died. The performance and the audience interaction is deftly facilitated by The Joker (Ali Clinch)
I was particularly impressed to
see how earnestly and vociferously the younger members of the audience cut
through prevarication and avoidance of responsibility and action to offer
constructive suggestions for resolution. Theirs is the powerful demand for
justice and compassion. Their voice
resounds with hope for the future. Although the Mayor appears more concerned
with attendance at the Christmas feste, the spectactors have succeeded in
having the factory closed down and the workers paid during the closure until
firm evidence can be presented
Boal provided an opportunity for
ordinary people to play a role in empowering a community to enact change. RebusTheatre
has taken on the mantle in Chemical
ReACTion. All injustice, all inequity and all oppression is placed under
the microscope for all to challenge. Judging by the enthusiastic and committed interaction of the
audience at Chemical ReACTion, Rebus
once again asserts itself as a theatre company determined to make a difference.