A house reverberating with the sounds of different generations; different times – joined together by the walls around them. What memories does a building hold? What has it seen? Is the house a home, or capital? These questions hover at every turn of our unique and delightfully voyeuristic journey around this house.
One of the most exciting pieces I’ve seen in a very long time
We are divided into two groups and it is suggested that we split up from the people we came with. Each group is given a guide in the form of a rather smarmy estate agent, complete with shiny smiles and the gift of the gab, who direct us in our exploration of the property. The first room I walk into is the master bedroom, the curtains are closed and the lighting is low, but warm. Then I notice a couple are lying in bed together, quiet, yet not asleep, while a cat luxuriates by their feet. We listen in on their conversation, feeling like we ought not to be there. This is just about as intimate as a viewing experience gets. The delineation between the performers and the audience has been thoroughly blurred - allowing access to this exciting space in between.
Upstairs a woman manically sorts through toys, while a young man has an emotional phone call before running out of the house. Downstairs an old woman sorts through her belongings ready to go to that ‘horrible home’. She talks about dancing as outside a woman sways to her own rhythm in the tree house framed for us by the window, but also captured on a video camera which we view on a television at the side of the room. The pieces are cleverly and meticulously put together. They are separate microcosms which interweave and the sounds of the pieces mingle at times, creating a sense of a whole.
The performances were impressive and for the most part convincing across the board. A scene with a cleaner was the only moment where a performer engaged with the audience and punctured the feeling of being an invisible presence in someone else’s house. Our invisibility is rendered void by hers.
This is a piece that pushes boundaries, plays with time and has the sense of a cracked reality which was at times reminiscent of David Lynch. One of the most exciting pieces I’ve seen in a very long time and an unforgettable viewing experience.
