The Image as an Event: The Lives of Images in M.#/0 Marseille and So Little Time

Abstract

An image is commonly thought of as having a flat, two-dimensional surface. However, numerous historical and contemporary artworks have successfully challenged this misleading presumption by exploring alternative ways of creating spatial and temporal images, such as the tableau vivant, holographic imaging technology and, most recently, immersive virtual environments. In line with this tendency, contemporary theatre and performance artists also play a role in expanding the definition of the image. This article analyses two contemporary theatre performances that stage the image as an event, as they 'expand' the image by bestowing on it the specific spatial and temporal logic of a theatrical event. Specifically, we consider how Romeo Castellucci's M.# 10 Marseille (2004) and Rabih Mroué's So Little Time (2016) each in their own way bring images to life within the theatre, exploring the self-reflexive and magical aspects of images, both within and outside the theatre.