[NetBehaviour] The Being

[Alan Sondheim]

The Being

Alan Sondheim, Charles Baldwin, Julu Twine
Odyssey, Alan Dojoji platform, Second Life

http://www.alansondheim.org/TheBeing.jpg
https://youtu.be/V56QfTieLEM VIDEO
http://www.alansondheim.org/TheBeing.txt
http://www.alansondheim.org/TheBeing.rtf

Please note: the video may start in the middle - If it does, push
the slider to the left. I wasn't able to correct this on YouTube.
The video is 30'28"; watch what you can. Thank you.

Performance in text and theater from texts by Julu Twine, Charles
Baldwin, Alan Sondheim

The Being is an extended high-speed meditation on the nature of
avatars, hysteria, the ontology of the real and virtual, cancer,
virus, groups and interferences, emissions, social distancing,
energy and death - all in the form of dialog, hysteric movement,
dance. The half-hour video is in real time, admittedly difficult
to watch; the text provides signposts. Some avatar movement
courtesy NJIT, WVU, and many other places. Thanks to the artists
in Odyssey for their support and friendship.

The text also stands on its own as a field for theatrical
performance.

"There was actually physicality in its production - trying to
control everything on the screen which included my avatar movement,
but also the movements of Julu Twine, as well as the camera and my
part of the text of course - not to mention the changing of the
platform landscape itself. so there was a lot going on, pushing at
the limits; at times, Charles and I also had to talk on the phone.
the speed of the text etc. is pretty much what it was in real life
- a lot of cut and paste on Charles' part from his and my texts,
but also I was typing directly in as well. Julu's movements were
controlled by a seonc interface, Radegast, which is a text-based
access to Second Life. And then there's all that theory going on of
course. Would love to see this produced as a play!" (from a reply
on Facebook)

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