What There Will Be Instead of An Audience

Abstract

The following text is the transcript of an experimental panel discussion that took place on 9 July 2010 at the conference ‘Performing the Future’ hosted by the interdisciplinary research centre Performing Cultures at the House of World Cultures in Berlin. A working group on the subjects of synchronization and participation organized the two-part session that began with a presentation by Irit Rogoff about audiences and participation entitled ‘The Implicated’, followed by a response by Kai van Eikels. The second part of the session opened with a Pecha Kucha presentation by six artists and curators and concluded with the discussion transcribed below. Since we wanted to discuss new forms of collectivity inside and outside the art world that break down the traditional divide between ‘performer’ and ‘audience’, it did not seem appropriate to place our guests on a podium. Instead, we encouraged them to distribute themselves among the audience, leaving the podium empty. We did not chair the panel either. After exchanging initial information, everybody – guests, working group members, audience members – became ‘The Implicated’. Microphones were passed around to whoever wanted to say something. Although some necessary edits have been made, this transcript tries to remain true to the dynamics of the discussion, at times meandering, at times becoming personal when particular people are addressed. We'd like to express our thanks to all participants. KAI VAN EIKELS AND BETTINA BRANDL-RISI