by
The Men Who Knew Too Much
At Planetarium until
30 July, 2000
http://tmwktm.axs.com.au
Reviewer: Kate
Herbert
Virtual Humanoids is
an LSD trip without the paranoia, technology without the expense, comedy
without the smoky venue. This is high-tech theatre for the new millenium.
If your last visit to the planetarium was at age eight, go
again. The Men Who Knew Too Much perform inside the dome of the Planetarium and
take us into theatrical cyberspace.
They tell the story of one night in cyberworld with a
disillusioned, lovelorn hacker, Setarcos (Adam Nash). This theatrical conceit
is merely a hook on which to hang heaps of cute and funny techno-babble,
website gags, peculiar characters and wild images.
The collision of their absurd humour and advanced technology
is like The Goons meeting Bladerunner. There are some achingly funny moments,
many being visual jokes about the internet. If you have never logged on, do so
before the show - or get the kids to fill you in on cyber talk.
The Men use their inimitable vocal style that is reminiscent
of Japanese theatre: slow, resonant, deep and atonal. Music (Adam Nash) fills
the space and thrums to the insane chorus of four robotic humanoids singing
bizarre lyrics. (Patrick Cronin, Simon Hill, Louis Dingemans, Richard Gray)
They appear both live on the stage and in various virtual
manifestations on the domed ceiling.
There are special effects to make Hollywood weep. Theatre
can transform and transport an audience. This show succeeds. We travel into
Ozone City as if in a video game. A member of the audience is hauled onstage,
photographed digitally and transposed into the virtual world.
Setarcos keeps appearing as a huge image of a depressive. He
seeks his ideal lover in cyberspace but
she is a virtual idol. On his journey, he defers to the Virtual Philosopher
(Peter Eckersall) and battles a vulgar laptop.
VH is written and designed by Simon Hill with music and
virtual reality by Adam Nash. Susie Dee, director of performance, keeps the
action slick and tight. It is a visual and comic treat but it could benefit
from a trim and some clarification of the narrative.
VH is not a profound critique of the internet world but it
turns an ironic eye onto the madness of cyberspace and extrapolates on what
goes on in one man's cyber-mind. Lie back and count the stars.
By Kate Herbert
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