Abstract

In this article, I seek to contextualise the work of Croatian collaborative performance collective BADco., specifically their performance Memories Are Made of This…Performance Notes (2006) which I witnessed at Chelsea Theatre (London) on 8 November 2008. By doing so I will perform an act of ‘double exposure’. Firstly, and perhaps on a meta-level, I will expose myself by describing a very personal experience of a performance that I felt intrigued, but also exposed by. Secondly, I will discuss the potentials of ‘inserting’ One to One encounters and their aftermaths into a formal theatrical framework by paying careful attention to the complex relationship between spectator and performer.

Writer and academic Rachel Zerihan has stated: ‘to feel an intimate interaction with ‘the performer’ can heighten the intensity of audience reception’ (2008: [my notes]). Within this proposed framework, I will consider concepts such as intimacy and exposure as possible effects that can develop from this relationship. Furthermore, I will explore the problematic dynamics and ethical implications that arise from an unusual performance situation. What happens when collective and singular spectatorship meet in one performance?