Golem
By Suzan Andrade
A 1927, Salzburg Festival, Theatre de la Ville Paris and Young Vic co-production
Adelaide Festival Theatre
10th March 2016
Director: Suzan Andrade
Suzan Andrade’s intriguing dystopian tale Golem focuses on elements of corporate greed and the rapidly expanding horizon of technology, and succeeds in providing the viewer a unique and fascinating view on an important topic. The performance was made up of a British cast, who have toured around the United Kingdom, as well as the majority of Australia. Both the performances and visuals of this piece manage to leave the audience truly astonished, with the choreography and movement adding to the surreal nature of the play. Andrade incorporated a variety of theatrical techniques to present the piece, such as multimedia projections, sound design, and lighting. These all combined to create a truly unique piece of theatre that managed to truly imprint into my mind. Truly a commentary on many social issues and foundations today, Golem never ceased to amazing through its smart script and impressive direction.
Probably the most immediately apparent element of the piece was the incredible set, which incorporated a mixture of live and digital effects, to create a seamless moving image of theatre. The backdrop and surrounding walls of the stage incorporated both gothic and Elizabethan styles, which helped to make the performance unique. Open space was abundant, and managed to be taken up by digital characters, such as the central “antagonist” Golem. Considering that Golem was animated through stop motion, and then adapted onto green screen, it looked quite incredible to see both a physical and digital character interact with each other. Depending on where each scene was taking place, the projections for the background would change, as well as the props that the characters would interact with. A walking background was used as an interlude between scenes, in which the central character would walk through a busy street, and as time passed, the signs and advertisements would adapt to the world evolving around them. The colouring of both the characters and the handmade animations also had a vintage aesthetic to it, focusing on bright yellows, reds and browns.
Each performer took advantage of the both the digital and physical world around them, and managed to tell an intriguing story of corporate greed and connection. The central character named Robert lives with his musician sister Annie, and they were brought up with their grandmother who taught them a life of knitting, anarchy and Beethoven. The central plot point is discovered in the first quarter of the narrative, when Robert discovers the man-machine known as Golem. Andrade touches on themes of control and ideas relating to technology, and addresses them in a modern manner through the nature of the Golem, and the consumerism nature of Robert. Satire was used to great effect through the narrative, adding a sharp political edge to the plot. The general conventions of both film and media were challenged throughout the production, and this was due to the narrative eventually collapsing into itself, a paradigm shift from the previous elements. Elements of consumerism are leaned on heavily in the narrative, with the mysterious corporation producing the Golems releasing a new model every few months. As the technology becomes more and more advanced, the stage became more and more bare, with Robert eventually becoming a robot like being that had become a pawn to the Golems. These narrative factors help keep what could have been an uninspiring slog, to a narrative staying true to the original myth of the Golem.
The majority of cast members with smaller rolls joined the cast during larger scenes, and provided viewers with comedic relief over the performances run-time. Although the majority was performed through the digital space, the lighting and sound team had to be incredibly aware of upcoming cues and story elements. Specific bursts of lighting were used to focus on specific characters, as well as hiding others. The sound also proved to be stunning, with a crystal clear style of music, as well as appealing to those who enjoy sensory humour. A prime example of this is when at the beginning of the performance, Annie performed with her band, Annie and the underdogs. The red, pulsating neon lights and booming bass of the guitar captivated the audience, and was an excellent starting point for the piece. The comedy was on and off, often used as a plot device to further the elements of consumerism. However, this all came together in the ending of the play, when the characters had been turned into nothing but corporate drones, not capable of anything other than promoting the latest Golem products. Andrade was obviously going for the Apple comparison, and she succeeded!
Suzan Andrade’s unique and bewildering “Golem” manages to be one of the most unique pieces of theatre that has come out in the last decade. Each scene manages to seamlessly connect the digital world and real actors, and it results in an incredibly beautiful moving image. The direction of the play is striking, and challenges the modern conventions set in the world of theatre and media today. Andrade twists a number of complex tales into the dark and gloomy world of Golem, and the visuals assist in creating a performance that will be sure to impress and amaze all.