The no-show of absence
| Objective: To make your views on the concept of absence shine by creating a no-show where something is missing! |
Duration: 30 to 60 minutes
Material:
- Your imagination
- Sheets of paper and pencils
- Props, if required
Instructions:
- Imagine your no-show. Have you ever carried a bag for so long that after taking it off, you had the strange feeling that something was missing? Your mission is to communicate this feeling of absence to your audience, but without ever mentioning what's missing! To do this, imagine a show in which something is missing: a person, an emotion, an object, a story, a word, a letter, an idea... the choice is yours! Then think of the physical sensations, feelings or thoughts that are triggered by the absence of this thing to display them on stage. How do your characters react to this absence? Do they desperately look for what is missing by turning over all the furniture? Do they wait patiently by inventing new games? Are they uncomfortable without wanting to explain what is happening?
- Inspiration: Absence of ideas? Here are some examples of absences to help you! Students are in class asking questions and responding to a teacher... who is not there! Friends are talking about an amazing painting, praising its colours, style, and creativity... but there isn’t one there. A strange bird is restlessly looking for something, getting more and more stressed out, without the audience ever knowing whether it's looking for its egg or its snack! Sailors are sailing for months in search of a legendary creature as frightening as it is fascinating, which they talk about in hushed voices without ever naming it... or meeting it.
- Get your no-show ready. Prepare the space you need to present absence. Will you need a stage, set or props—or will the absence of these elements help create the atmosphere of a lack? Will you even be there?
- Present your no-show. When everything is ready for the big show, invite your family to come and experience your no-show of absence.
- Think about your no-show. Was it easy or difficult to present something absent? Ask members of your audience if they can identify what is missing from your show and how they would have staged its absence. Together, you can try to define what an absence is. What characterizes it? How does it feel? Can someone be with us even when they are absent? Conversely, can someone be absent even while being present?
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Bonus: To take your collective thinking even further, you can read the following sayings and proverbs to your audience. Can you find the different definitions of the concept of absence that are assumed in these quotes—that is, find different hidden meanings? Do you agree or disagree with them? Why or why not? If you want, you can even stage the sayings, to try to express different perspectives on absence!
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| Tricks for tots: Think of something you really like, and imagine that this thing is gone! How does that make you feel? What are you thinking about? What are you doing? Are you in a panic? Are you calmly working out a rescue plan? For your show, your mission will be to ask your family for help in finding this treasured object, but be careful, you can't tell them what it is! Describe how you feel without it. Tell them about the memories you have of being with it. Can they guess what the missing object is? |
| Tips for teens: The writer George Pérec wrote a 300-page novel called A Void without ever using the letter "e." Reading this book gives people a feeling of absence, without the omission of the letter ever being mentioned. Try to write a passage on absence in a similar style, without using the letter "e"—or another letter if you prefer—then include it in your show! For example: "How can I stay without any of my companions… Can I carry on in isolation?” |
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Include photos of your projects and notes of your thoughts, as well as your first name and your age!
