afterburner major productions and critical reception
Afterburner specialises in productions hybridising installation and live performance. [6] [11] Other major productions have included Fission, Nag, and The Cell Trilogy, which included The Singularity and The Telescope.
The Cell Trilogy
Between 2001 and 2008, afterburner created and presented a trilogy of work about astrophysics and human nature. The Cell Trilogy included Man on the Moon (2001), The Telescope (2002) and The Singularity (2008). [12]
The Telescope involved composers Sebastian Morgan Lynch and Steve Gallagher present on stage while their music interacted with light and the performers' actions. [13] When presented at the FUEL Festival, reviewer William Peterson described it as fitting in with the New Zealand tradition of theatre practice of "a willingness to cross interdisciplinary boundaries". [13]
The Singularity received mixed reviews; the design rated highly with the set and light "telling a story of its own" and the soundscape by Matthew Hutton adding value, but the script was described as "too cryptic". [12] [14] [15] The Singularity was written and directed by Miranda Manasiadis, from an original story by Miranda Manasiadis, Roberts and Jason Whyte. The actors were Danny Mulheron, Jessica Robinson, Rose Beauchamp and Jason Whyte. Set design was by Roberts, lighting design by Roberts and Rob Larson. [16]
Dark Matter
Afterburner's 2016 production Dark Matter contributes to a small number of performing arts work in New Zealand that centre creative work by lighting designers "as a work about light". [17] A review in Theatreview compared Dark Matter to works by David Lynch, in part because "the tension...never lets up for the full 45 minute performance" due to the darkness and the sound which "menaces and rumbles"; in other words, the tension makes the audience part of the piece. [18]
The production Dark Matter won two Dunedin Fringe Festival awards in 2016, and Best of Fringe 2017 in the New Zealand Fringe Festival in Wellington. [19] [20] Dark Matter was also featured in the 2018 Dunedin Arts Festival and at the 2019 Prague Quadrennial as a virtual reality exhibit. [6] Dark Matter came from Roberts' master of fine arts thesis. [21] Designer and critique Sam Trubridge places Dark Matter amongst the work of other lighting designers in New Zealand such as Tony Rabbit, Marcus McShane and Helen Todd (and her work with Lemi Ponifasio), who treat light as "an art form that is expressive in its own right". [17] In Dark Matter the audience starts in complete darkness "unable to even see their hands in front of them" and so visually impaired it creates a "heightened sensory experience". The sound was created by Dr Jeremy Mayall. [22]
Fission
Fission, produced by afterburner, was performed over five nights in March 2019 at the Allen Hall Theatre, telling the story of Lise Meitner, who discovered nuclear fission but was overlooked for a Nobel Prize despite being nominated 48 times. [19] [23] It was an arts and science collaboration by theatre-makers and scientists that had a focus on process and learning. One of the frameworks of the project was a "bicultural performance process", and the project investigated connections between science and mātauranga Māori. [24]
There were a number of workshops with reflection, research and meetings in between. The first workshop was in December 2016 with Rua McCallum (theatre-maker and Māori researcher), Megan Wilson (dancer), Roberts, Anna van den Bosch (technician), Hilary Halba and David O’Donnell (theatre directors) and scientists David Hutchinson and Dr Ian Griffin. Other collaborators were added to subsequent workshops. [24]
At the time of the 2019 production Fission the team of 19 theatre professionals held 19 awards between them. [19] A summary of the research in the creation of Fission is stated in a paper published in The Theatre Times:
In this work, a scientific theory such as quantum entanglement can also become a dramaturgical and aesthetic principle. Fission also demonstrates the considerable potential of collaborative devised theatre in opening up connections between Indigenous knowledge and scientific theories. (2020 – Hilary Halba and David O’Donnell with David Hutchinson, Rua McCallum and Martyn Roberts) [24]
