Diving into the abyss: scenography for contemporary aquatic theatres

Abstract

Confronting the dominance of two-dimensional computer images that keep us distant from what we see, the commercial entertainment industry continues to search for ways to involve the audience in the theatrical experience by altering its visual presentation and making a stronger appeal to other senses. Moves to introduce water as a scenographic element in shows such as O (Cirque du Soleil at the Bellagio in Las Vegas), Le Rêve – The Dream (Wynn, Las Vegas) or The House of Dancing Water (City of Dreams, Macau) have contributed to the development of advanced stage technologies that, in turn, have provided opportunities to expand the tactile potential of scenography, particularly by allowing the possibility to dive into an under-stage water tank and experience the show from beneath the surface of the water. This article investigates how these new technologies affect audience experience in aquatic theatres, focusing on the haptic and kinaesthetic experience of diving in the water tank at Le Rêve and the perceptual alteration produced by audience displacement in such an environment. The physical presence of the spectator in the water creates a profoundly different perceptual experience and contributes to an abolition of aesthetic distance. What is gained in crossing this scenographic divide, and what is lost? How much distance does scenography need to keep its artistic integrity, and how much distance do spectators need in order to retain their ability for ideological critique? Based on the examples of long-running aquatic shows O, Le Rêve and The House of Dancing Water, this article tries to answer these questions by focusing on the spectator's perceptual and sensory experience in relation to the scenographic construction, including the site-specific technological requirements, of large-scale aquatic spectacles.