JONATHAN STONE
From Imagining to Managing
DINNER
In 1990, I made DINNER, with 6 performers from six different countries coming together on stage.
The original performers were Randolph Curtis Rand (USA), Pilar Álamo (Puerto Rico), Marcela Kingman (Chile) Miqueias Paz (Brazil), Sharon Mack (Scotland) and Luc Favrou (France). Each performer evolved their own invented language for the performance; developing distinct characters and possible languages. Much of the work involved learning and working within rhythmic and choreographic structures, so the performers had to work as actors, dancers and musicians. DINNER evolved out of the work I did with Ralf Ralf in collaboration with my brother Barnaby and Lars Goran Persson. The work we did around rhythmic breathing and invented language resulted in a performance - THE SUMMIT - on super-power politics that played in twenty countries and seemed to be understood whenever we played it, hinting at a near universal language of gesture, facial expression, music of speech - a language than can communicate relationships, emotion, status and character.
DINNER was built by the performers and myself in 4 rehearsal periods- in Glasgow, Walker Arts Centre, Minneapolis, Jacob's Pillow and the Atlantic Center for the Arts, Florida. During rehearsals, we videotaped meals and parties which were used as part of the research for the project and studied the videos for character and behaviour. Although there is some room for improvisation between performers the basic structure was set.
As we rehearsed, I got more involved in thinking about the audience's expectation when going to see performances of another culture. It builds an anticipation for exoticism and strangeness. Do we gratify them by parading our cultures? Is the audience guest of the performers or are they intruding voyeurs?
There are two sets of stories going on in DINNER. There are the stories of the relationships between the performers and there is the story of the relationship between the performers and audience. In the UK, DINNER was produced by Sharon Flindell in association with the Third Eye Centre and with funds from the Glasgow 1990 European Cultural Capital and the International Initiatives Fund of the Arts Council of Great Britain.
In the USA, DINNER was produced by Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival in association with Spoleto USA and Walker Arts Centre with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Interarts, New Forms Programme.
DINNER toured for two years. In the second year it had a slightly different cast; I performed Luc's part and Vanda Mota (Brazil) performed Marcela's part.
"Art lives in the moment
With the vivid intuition of
What's to come...
What you brought to life
Was a most unique voice in a time where "diversity and inclusion"
lived only in the desire of those without a platform or a seat at the dinner table...
Now at least it's a conversation.
You invited us all to dinner and that was a reflection to many...
I'm grateful to each of you...
I learned a lot." Marcela Kingman