Interference Between Present and Absent Performers

Abstract

Interference between Present and Absent Performers: Time-Specific Performance as Phenomenal Experience The performance of the play Lise & Otto employed digital technology in an innovative and surprising way. Two performers presented their characters in two locations that were connected by fibre optic cables. The audiences, situated in two suburbs in Stockholm, saw either the actress or the actor live in front of them, while the other performer's image and voice were transmitted digitally. The simultaneous actions emphasized a cleavage of space - symbolic in a play about atomic fission - and created a yearning for the absent performer. This phenomenon can be described as time-specific performance, analogous to site-specific performance, while at the same time questioning the paradigm of presence as as a condition of theatrical events. The article argues for an extension of the theoretical concepts of theatre studies in order to cope with contemporary technological innovations, time-specificity, and unexpected theatrical experiences.