Theatre Junction's latest creation, Outside / In, is about to premiere online, live from NOMAD studio in Montreal. Continuing on their pathway with an irrepressible instinct for innovation, Outside / In is an interactive digital art work inspired from the logic of the panopticon (a disciplinary concept brought to life in the form of a central observation tower placed within a circle of prison cells). It is a multidisciplinary science fiction allegory that shines light into the corners of a society built on systems of control.
We will be waiting for you to open the virtual doors of the troubling universe of Outside/In from June 3 to 11, 2022.
« Le village global est peuplé d’êtres humains désincarnés qui n’existent plus dans leurs présences physiques, mais existent électroniquement, réduit à être une image et un pattern d’informations, rien de plus. »
- Marshall McLuhan
Will we find freedom in the digital future ?
We often think of freedom as a place without borders, without restrictions. A place with no boundaries. A society where we can express our differences completely, where we can follow our deepest desires. Self-determination. Civil liberty.
But sometimes we forget that this place we are looking for resides inside of us, we need to cultivate the imaginative capacity of our secret gardens to find freedom, before seeking it in the outside world. The more we contemplate ourselves and others in the social media mirror the further we are from truth and freedom. The outside becomes the inside and we become shadows of ourselves. However on our journey, there are many doors to unlock, rooms to discover, windows to open.
Control, isolation, and togetherness
This long period of social control and isolation that we have lived through as a result of the pandemic has left many of us reflecting on what it means to be together as a society. Being isolated by essence makes us more individualistic, however this artificial formatting has been imposed on our society long before the pandemic. It's the simplistic and efficient mode of divide and conquer which aims to weaken the civil society. A positive aspect that has occurred however, is the desire to exit the culture of domination, colonization, and exploitation, and change the fundamentals of the system. There is a desire to reconnect to nature, and examen concepts of sustainability and regenerative models of living in community. A movement seeking to free ourselves from the addiction to instant (and constant) gratification inherent in the “anything, anywhere, anytime culture”. If we still want to believe in the future, our behavioral pattern needs to change fundamentally.
Real life connection and gathering, no matter how difficult it can be, is healing and is essential to a collective re-construction. We say this even though we love solitude, and need it, more than most. But we also need to feel the real vibrations of other human beings, there is mystery there, and it is profound, disturbing, and beautiful. It is this beauty and mystery that heals us. We will be waiting for you with love and in person after the livestream on June 4 at NOMAD, 129 Van Horne, QC. Join us!