When light comes to matter: reimagining light in contemporary theatre through intra-actions

Abstract

ABSTRACT The concepts of relationality and materiality, as explored in recent studies in contemporary scenography, offer valuable insights into the nature and aesthetics of performance lighting. Particularly, the theory of agential realism put forth by physicist-theorist Karen Barad, along with the notion of intra-action, challenges the metaphysical assumptions of individualism and the preexistence of separate entities, encompassing both human and nonhuman elements. This theory troubles the understanding of the relationality and materiality of light and invites a reimagination of its supposedly predetermined nature and aesthetics within the realm of theatre. In this short essay, I revisit my original performance work with intra-action as the core creative concept. By examining the intra-actions involving light and other human and nonhuman entities, with a specific focus on the creative process, I argue that the concept of intra-action has the potential to provoke a rethinking of light as a predetermined, independent visual element of performance. Furthermore, it stimulates a reimagining of the aesthetics of light in relation to other theatrical elements, encompassing both human (creators, performers, and spectators) and nonhuman matters (sound, space, architecture, technological apparatus, etc.) within the context of contemporary performance.