Article written by Breanna Smith.
Gold Coast Commonwealth Games 2018. You may have heard about them recently. If you have been anywhere near the Gold Coast or South East Queensland this past month you probably have heard of the Games and how well the Aussies are doing in the Medal Tally (80 Gold, 59 Sliver and 59 Bronze in case you were wondering).
What you might not have heard unless you live nearby was Festival 2018. A set of activities including music, theatre, circus, dance, ideas, visual arts and film from the Gold Coast, Australia and across the globe, held alongside the Commonwealth Games from the 4th to the 15th April. With the most important factor was the festival being free. While a limited few did have a small cost involved most were free and were for the general public to enjoy. So you could pack a lunch head down to Broadbeach or Surfers Paradise and experience a day filled with entertainment from over 50 countries. These performers came from around the globe to share their stories traveling from Africa and the Americas, from Oceania and Asia, also the Caribbean and Europe all to perform here on the Gold Coast. And all this free to the public. So here we look at some of the benefits of free performance besides a cheap day out.
One of the main reasons to have a free event for general public, from an organising standpoint is to draw people in. By not having a cost to attend the performances it allows for a more open event allowing more people to come in, more spontaneous, and be a part of the events even if just for a short while.
One performance where this is clearly seen with Holoscenes a performance by the Early Morning Opera from the USA, a performance piece where the audience “Watches with bated breath as an enormous aquarium-like tank unpredictably floods with water, engulfing those inside.”* thought out the production. Viewers are able to come and go as they please with the performance space having a walkway dividing it, allowing people to stay as long as they are enjoy the production.
Onlookers are able to learn their own level of comfort to the new performance piece without feeling forced to stay for the whole duration. It is a more freeing experience for the audience as they are able to see something they have not before and be able to judge it how they wish.
It also helps the performer, if viewers are not enjoying the piece, they are able to leave, meaning those watching are actively connecting to the performance. By being free it allowed more people to view it. Something due to its oddness, it may not have benefited without the advantage of people being able to come and go.
Another benefit of this particular event is introducing people to new ideas. In a setting such as Broadbeach where each production having their own marquees near one another, crowds are able to roam the festival, allowing for a mix of ideas with people able to flow between stalls, exploring new ideas. Having these side by side encourages people to walk from one to another, open to ideas as they walk and take in what is in front of them allowing people to listen to what others have to say, starting a dialog between people.
A production that makes use of this is Gathering, directed by Luther Cora. This performance starts with the Yugambeh dancers performing a number of contemporary dance as well as traditional pieces before teaching it to anyone who wants to learn. Mainly focusing on children as they are more willing to learn and bring adults in alongside them. By doing this it welcomes people in and makes them proud to learn and make them want to share and what is in front of them.
Alongside the dance participants also learning key values in teaching and culture of the Yugambeh people, they are taught key values and the lesson of the 3 L’s. LOOK, LISTEN LEARN and Respect. A lesson that is then brought home by those taking part and incorporated into daily life.
Those involved want to learn what is new to them and then wish to share it and maybe boast a bit, whether in the playground, at school or for those a bit older, on social media, leading to more understanding of the topic for future conversation and a cheerful way to bring more awareness to the topic leading to a more empathetic connection between people and cultures.
There are also benefits for performers. Interactions between audience and performers are more fast-paced, because performers are unaware of who they will be performing to they have to be ready to respond, stay in character and react to the audience, all while being entertaining and true to the performance.
They must be truthful, resourceful, accurate and aware of their surroundings. This can be quite different to a pre-planned on-stage performance. While some scenes may be designed for audiences’ interaction it is hard to practice for children running thought the performance or having to change your performance halfway though, due to a camera crew from Britain’s ITV asking half way throughout your performance to film for their 6 o’clock news (Yes this did happen during one of the performances).
Because these events are free to the public you are unaware of what might happen and what might come next. Where in paying events people attending have planned and want to be at the event and know what it is about and how to react. Free events draw in a whole array of people and you are uncertain what their experience or knowledge of the performance is. By being unaware of how they are going to behave or react, and you do not know if they are going to enjoy it or not.
As a performer introducing this unknown can be crazy but exhilarating. An example of this can be The Lost Lending Library by Punchdrunk in the UK. Though a show aimed at children, you still do not know how they are going to react to what’s around them. I watched one performer who had to work around a child constantly asking about pearls and opening everything in sight even affecting the storyline of the performance. But they were able to stay on track keeping the child and others around him engaged. It was wonderful to watch and added to the truth and real-world-ness of the performance, bringing real questions and the children’s own adventures into the show. It adds to the spectacle and brings joy to the children as they are brought into the story and lessening the repetitiveness of a performance for the actors. Many performers will tell you after 20 shows, staying in love with the script can be hard and the addition of this uncertainly can add to the enjoyment of a performance.
Of course, there are other benefits of Festival 2018, it allows for alternative entertainment to the sporting elements of the Commonwealth Games without having to leave the city or spend a large amount of money. It makes memories as you interacted with those around you whether fellow audience members or the performers themselves. It can be seen as an intimate experience rather in comparison to the Games where, although there was a fantastic amount of crowd emotion, some events can get a bit repetitive and the event can be far from where you are.
While the two events are different you can see how they are able to complement each other. While one being larger than life and sporty and the other being creatively up-close and personal, they both add value in different way and fit together perfectly.
*Quotes and Information from www.gc2018.com/festival2018 official site of the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and Festival 2018
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