Living

Behind the façades

Do you enjoy those moments when the lights inside houses are already on but the curtains are still open? It’s peeping-in time! Your eyes greedily search the private domain for ‘the real living’. Of course you see signs of everyday routine and boredom, but also that spark of domestic movement that is what really interests you.

Living is a play without words. The characters are vague, and so is the plot, but the set is razor-sharp. There is a leap in time. A pregnant silence. You may find it agreeable. Or unbearable. This is an improper use of the living room. A sideways glance. Or a violation of privacy, of your fellow humans and of yourself.

Since it premiered in 2004, Tristero have performed five sell-out series of Abigail’s Party, a bitter-sweet comedy by the film-maker and playwright Mike Leigh. A crucial and controversial element in this production was the stage set: a hyper-realistic reconstruction of a living room in the style of the early seventies, right down to the clink of ice cubes for the gin and tonic and Demis Roussos on the turntable.

Living is based on this set. The living room is a thoroughfare for the occupants and visitors, with their thoughts, desires and fantasies. Living is a performance without words that is a cross between theatre, dance and live installation. The focus is on movement and atmosphere.

Abigail’s Party and Living are two separate performances, each created on the basis of personal necessity, which could be combined to form a diptych. However, Living should stand up alone. Anyone who sees both plays will unquestionably find that the experience of viewing one influences that of the other.

Saturday November 22nd: AFTERPARTY for the 15 anniversary of Tristero!