When it comes to theatre, the format is usually pretty standard, right? The performers act a story out in front of you from a raised stage, whilst the audience sits neatly in rows side by side; it sounds familiar doesn’t it? Well, there’s nothing familiar about Three’s Theatre Company’s latest production ‘3 Stories‘, at The MAC that’s for sure.
The concept of 3 Stories was a bold one, three performers created a piece of physical theatre in just three days and then three writers were invited to individually craft a narrative to represent what they saw. Split into three sections members of the audience will experience one of these three interpretations through Silent Event headphones whilst the performers jump, writhe and interact in front of them.
For just under an hour you will be immersed in a story told through music, narration and dance, but you probably won’t be seeing the same show as your mate who’s sitting across from you, and that’s because 3 Stories is the latest in Three’s Theatre Company’s unique brand of Choice Theatre, a style of theatre, where the audience literally makes a choice about what to see and hear.
Now, if you’ve seen any other ‘Choice Theatre‘ productions by Three’s Theatre Company such as Thinking About Thoughts, Date Show or Date Show: After Dark, then you will be familiar with the Silent Event headphones used throughout these performances. Set to one of three channels, different people will hear different stories depending on what colour their headphones are glowing: green, blue or red.
As you enter The MAC you are presented with a simple choice, and that choice will dictate what interpretation of the dance you see. The choice is made by dipping your hand in a big bowl of origami pieces and there is a fish, a bird or a chain to choose from. Once you have your piece of origami you enter the upstairs theatre and are directed to one of three sections.
There is a big triangle of space in the middle of the theatre and each section has chairs set up on each side of the triangle facing the centre. Not only will each section be hearing a different story, but they will be viewing the performance from three different angles as well.
If you lift a fish from the bowl of origami then you will hear As Good as a Fish by Mary Jordon; a chain means you will be listening to Colm G Doran’s Connection; whilst if you’re like me and choose a bird then you will experience Ciaran Haggarty’s Seagull.
Haggarty’s piece tells the story of a baby (represented in dance by the talented Anna Leckey)trying to make sense of the traumatic events of its birth; it’s mother (portrayed through the movements of Aimee Montgomery) is plagued by depression (personified by Michael Bingham). At least I think that’s what the story was about…with poetic prose and at times extremely subtle movements we are invited to almost create our own interpretation of both words and movement, a task which I struggled with at first but soon embraced.
Worried I wasn’t following the story closely enough, I had to fiddle with the volume on my headphones only to discover that I had missed the first minute or so of dialogue and was a little lost, but once I got to grips with the technology I started to get the hang of it. The dance itself is raw, emotional and dark, with movements that sometimes applied to Seagull so perfectly that I wasn’t sure how the other two sections could be hearing something different than I was.
The concept for this project may have been a bold one, but it’s safe to say that the performers, the writers and everyone else involved really pulled it off. Three’s Theatre Company are quickly becoming known for their unique and ambitious approach to theatre and I can’t wait to see what they do next.
3 Stories is on at The MAC until tonight with a showing at 6.45pm and another at 8.45pm. Click here to get tickets.
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