First up to be put here is my submissions for Site Specific Dance, which was great fun to do.
This post is the first of my two outlines for assignment 1: Site Selection and Audience Design.
The task was:
In the space below, write a short description of Site #1. Include:
- Where the site is located
- What its purpose is, or describe its use
- Your relationship to it (did anything significant happen here in your past?) or why you are drawn to it
- Any relevant links, if desired.
In the same space (and preferably in a separate paragraph), explain how you envision a work could be performed in Site #1, and how an audience would experience that work. This doesn't have to be a definitive plan; you may choose two or three locations within the site as possibilities at this point.
From your documentation of Site #1, select four (4) or more photographs that include, at minimum:
- Two photographs that describe the site
- One photograph that shows where the work could be performed (from the point of view of the audience)
- One photograph that shows where the audience would be located
The spiel I wrote for my first site, and the corresponding photos follow:
Site #1: Didcot Railway Centre (http://www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/ )
Site Location: This is right next to the railway station in my home town, which in on a busy set of tracks from London to the West of England/Wales, only 45 minutes out of London
Purpose/Use: This is a museum basically, but of industrial items related to the railways.
Relationship: It as a venue has no specific significance to me, however, it is one of the places locally that echoes where I grew up, which had a strong railway connection and was a docks town. This sympathetic mirroring draws me to this as a venue, the industrial travel for a purpose, combined with the pleasure access that you get in a museum, and got where I grew up as it was also a seaside resort.
The museum also has days where they run steam trains along some of the old branch lines in the area. It has been used already in a number of films and TV shows, which means it can be a familiar feel to a wide range of people.
This is likely to be a promenade performance, as there is a wide area with a range of old stock and other interesting sites throughout the centre which performance could enhance the joy of exploring.
There are most likely aspects of all 4 categories of site-specification that could be used, e.g. a scene from The Railway Children, studio work could transfer to a platform, something which uses a flat space and a general item of rolling stock could be adaptive, with some things being only available at Didcot, and probable the overall piece being site-specific. As well as the audience actually walking, if this were combined with a steam day then the romance of the steam will add to the mood, as well as providing an opportunity for the audience to ride a train with further performances occurring where they would be unlikely to go on foot, or even within the carriages.
This is a view from offsite to give a feel for the overall location
A couple of photos to give a feel for the museum itself
This could be a good location to intermingle the audience and the performers:
Performance spots (from audience perspective)
The turning circle
This one was taken a little late, but there are some derelict type spots that can just be seen to the left hand side of the photo
Possible audience locations
Travelling on a train, sat in the seats, or gathered outside to watch
I failed to take a photo for this massive green space from the other side - hence being on the train, the performers would actually be at other points most likely, the turning circle is in that shot, although it is difficult to tell that.
