Stimulation and connection: science and theatrical experience in Complicite’s Mnemonic

Abstract

ABSTRACTFirst produced in 1999, Complicite’s Mnemonic is one of the best examples of plays to use the potential of the stage to convey complex scientific ideas. Complicite’s creative utilization of dramaturgical strategies and theatrical techniques enables the company to artistically enact the complex mechanism of simulation and connection on which the act of remembrance is based. However, performativity is not the only means by which Complicite transfers science from the laboratory to stage. The complex science behind the act of remembrance is also enacted on the stage via the play’s narrative structure and the internationalism that it advocates. The present study provides an in-depth analysis of the ways in which science is presented in the play, by detecting and discussing the mnemonic devices that not only hold the play's narrative elements together but also expand the proscenium arch to involve the audience, via shared images of exile, immigration, and displacement.