First Bites Directors' Season

Stuart Murdoch

Oval House Theatre

Steven Nash

It is advertised as an exploration of the brutality of war and the honesty of religion through the story of Saint Joan, but it soon becomes apparent that something else is being explored in this work-in-progress directed by Stuart Murdoch.

That something else is the audience and our relationship to what we are witness to. This is both a physical and psychological journey for both the actors and the audience. The performance itself lasts for only 30 minutes, but leaves the audience with a number of questions and conundrums. The central questions for me are what it was trying to do and whether it worked or not.

We begin our journey as participants in a press conference. Two men field questions from the press in modern 'NATO' style. That style is a matey one and on first name terms with the press pack. They are discussing the mental health of a prisoner of war. This prisoner is Saint Joan, the 15th century 'maid of Orleans'. We are in parallel worlds. The world of 21st century militarism and of 15th century mysticism.

The next part of the journey takes us through a darkened passage past a prison cell where in between the strobe lighting we catch glimpses of a traumatised prisoner in the corner of the room. We are asked to examine photographs on the wall of the passageway. They are images of war and atrocities. We are thanked for our co-operation and tellingly our 'passivity'. No-one from the audience has said anything even though it is fairly obvious by this time that we are a part of an improvisational piece of theatre.

We are led into another room where we are instructed to stand behind a line. We all meekly obey as a light is shone into the space. Joan is then released and then proceeds to deliver a fevered monologue where she is tortured by self-doubts. We are again back in the world of 15th century religious mysticism.

Suddenly there is a change in the atmosphere as two guards in military uniform enter the space. Joan retreats behind the line where the audience is still seeking anonymity. She is looking for help as the two guards attempt to cajole her out from behind the line. This is the build up to the final denouement and the challenge to the audience. We are now not just the observers but the observed as the guards make eye contact with us. We all remain true to our passive role as Joan is forcefully taken from beyond the sanctuary of the line.

The shock treatment for the audience then follows as Joan is brutally raped by both guards. As she is dragged behind a screen illuminated with images of Christ the guard continues to make eye contact daring someone to intervene. No-one does and the ferocity of the acting combined with the complicity of the audience makes for uncomfortable viewing.

It is this discomfort that Stuart Murdoch is seeking to explore. In a discussion after the play he admits to some influences on him in the making of this work. One is a dissatisfaction with George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan and the other is a visit to an exhibition of photographs of September 11th where he was struck by the voyeurism of the observer.

In fact on reflection the whole experience is a mass of contradictions and confused emotions. Does the play explore the religious life of Saint Joan and the impact that this had on the society of the time. Quite clearly no. In fact the use of Joan is only a ruse to fool us that we are about to witness something more familiar. It could be any victim of war. It is our voyeurism that the director is interested in.

Instead of passively viewing the performance we are a part of the action and complicit in the crimes. He is trying to use theatre as a way of confronting the voyeurism and passivity of contemporary society. It is clearly a theme worth pursuing. As to whether it worked or not, I have mixed feelings. On a raw emotional level it worked and pressed all the right buttons. On an intellectual level I have my doubts. Although whether the intellectual level matters in this instance I am not sure.

Is the play an anti-war play? As soon as you try to question what it is we are suppose to engage with you enter a far messier world; the world of politics and judgements. Are we to interpret the play as asking us to intervene to prevent atrocities (something Tony Blair is claiming to do in Iraq) or is it a pacifist message?

I guess this is to take it too far, but you cannot help but speculate. In this sense the play is a success. Through shock treatment we are learning to question both our role as a passive audience and our role as passive consumers in wider society. In this sense perhaps Stuart Murdoch has more in common with George Bernard Shaw than he suspects. They both want to shock the audience. Carry on experimenting, Stuart.

One off performance.

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