The Beijing Adventure

A report on the OISTAT Scenography Commission Symposium

Upcoming OISTAT Scenography Events

Is There Much Future in Scenography?

About OISTAT

But it is the activities of individuals, not committees, that make OISTAT function. In the Scenography Commission, the goal is to enhance the work of individual designers who come in contact with the organization. Artists must be exposed to new ideas and new cultures in the hope of developing more relevant work. Such exposure is the primary aim of the Scenography Commission, and so annual conferences are held all over the world.

There is also an important political aspect. In the beginning the emphasis was on contact with Warsaw Pact countries. The work of many of these Designers, particularity in the Czechoslovakia and East Germany, has had an enormous influence in shaping the philosophy of modern theatre. Without OISTAT, it is possible that seminal work from a whole generation of Theatre Artists would have gone largely unnoticed.

With the normalization of relations among European countries, it would seem that this particular function of OISTAT is less important. Europe, however, is not the only area of the world where Artists sometimes encounter difficulty reaching their audiences. International exposure in some cases is almost impossible.

It is for these reasons that the executive of OISTAT was delighted to have the opportunity to hold this year¹s conference in Beijing. From my perspective, there are three immediate benefits to such a conference: it is an opportunity to demonstrate to the international design community current Canadian Theatre trends; it is a chance to discover what is happening in other countries; and it is a means of showing support for artists who are otherwise quite isolated.

Long term benefits of such contact can be profound. It has been proven time and again that Artists operating under duress produce work of enormous poignancy and urgency. The energy that this work can impart to the entire discipline must not be underestimated. OISTAT must continue its work of maintaining contact with all Designers, particularity those for whom theatre is more than just entertainment.

A Week in Beijing

OISTAT is intended to promote the exchange of ideas around the world. The means of establishing or maintaining contacts with designers in other countries are the annual commission conferences, and the Beijing Conference performed this role admirably. Each delegate was required to present a slide show illustrating what is current or important in hir country, and, with the usual somnolent exceptions, most of the delegates presented interesting and provocative material.

The ensuing group discussions revolved around comparing conditions throughout the world. This usually breaks down into two topics: different solutions each country applies to a similar artistic challenge; and the similar problems we all face with financing and with bureaucracy. The size of the conference allowed all participants to be heard at the official meetings. But there was also plenty of opportunity for individual discussion, and designers of all nationalities are intensely committed to the post-midnight verbal altercation as a means of sharing information. Sobriety is optional, and multilingualism is a good hedge against coherence.

China is a fascinating and incomprehensible land. I am not in a hurry to leave beautiful B.C. to take up residence, but it was important to me to see this country and get some insight into how it operates. The organizers of the conference provided several opportunities for sightseeing. We saw all the obligatory sights around Beijing.

I was interested to read Bob Doyle¹s account of his trip last year [in StageWorks Vol.1, #2]. I understand some of what he went through. Certainly some of our adventures were carefully choreographed, and we were housed in a Holiday Inn which could as well have been in Vancouver. However, we were not completely sequestered, and we had the chance for a what we assume to be a reasonably candid view of Chinese life. The hotel was in the centre of the city, and most people managed to investigate the neighbourhood. Several of the delegates took individual side trips to other areas.

We also had an opportunity to attend two shows. We were treated to a production by one of the modern mainstream Beijing companies. It was a rather bizarre blend of the issues of everyday Chinese life presented in a fashion derived from western television. ³Situation Tragedy² was the way my wife described it. Very odd indeed, and not improved a bit by my understanding of Mandarin.

The second production we saw was the classical Beijing Opera. It was an astounding mixture of mime, acrobatics and instrumental improvisation. If you can get past the somewhat discordant music, this is a highly energetic and enjoyable theatre form. It is also very important in the life of the Chinese. After several official attempts to discourage the art, it has lost any of the grandeur that I had associated with the opera, but it still survives, and many of the audience were singing along softly with the performance. This is a vital and thriving folk art that I am glad to have been able to see.

There Was Some Business Transacted

Upcoming OISTAT Scenography Events