Courtesy of Intercultural Theatre Institute

The Chair marks the debut of the 2023 graduating cohort of the Intercultural Theatre Institute (ITI). An original work directed by Li Xie, The Chair raises questions on individual and collective responsibility, grief, and the desperate, at times absurd pursuit of justice in an unjust world. Who has the right to decide? When is justice served? What do we owe to each other in the balancing of scales? 

I interviewed Li Xie and a few members of the cast to find out more about the show.

What is the devising process like? Was the theme of justice decided beforehand or did it evolve out of the devising process?

Cheng Kam Yiu (Yolanda): It is a collaboration between the director and actors. We first shared our views and interpretations of the script then put the imagination on the floor. From a common understanding of the content, we devised the score using different elements such as movement, sound, space, and object. The score became more detailed and refined throughout the process. There are multiple themes in the script while the actors are exploring their own characters’ journeys of dealing with grief and loss under an extreme circumstance.

As the students have learnt many performance forms and training systems, did you tap into their varied training as you direct the piece?

Li Xie: Yes, the most important aspect is how to bridge their varied training beyond its forms, to discover how all various roads lead to similar core essence in performance.

Meyerhold’s Biomechanics features quite strongly in the rehearsal process. Were there any interesting discoveries you had about the actor training system as you and your cohort worked on The Chair?

Choy Chee Yew: We trained intermittently in Biomechanics over the past three years and the production was an opportunity to put the training into practice. The principles of Biomechanics are actually applicable in all aspects of theatre-making, but as our training wasn’t continuous, it was noticeable that the principles were not as ingrained in some of our bodies as they should.

The rehearsal process made it clear that certain misconceptions of Biomechanics needed to be debunked. As a training system, it adopts certain stylised approaches to impart its principles, especially the etudes. However, this doesn’t mean that an actor trained in Biomechanics has to perform in a stylised manner like an etude. Even in a realistic play, the principles of biomechanics are still as relevant; precision, rhythm, clarity, efficiency, and the conscious use of the whole body in expressing intention.

During the devising process, there were many uncertainties, such as the understanding of the characters’ intentions and how to best use a very bare stage. At times, this resulted in a lack of clarity in what we were trying to express. We were constantly reminded to return to our truthful instincts to approach the character, and then to use the training principles we’ve learnt to deliver in the clearest and most efficient way.

What would an ideally just world look like?

Li Xie: This is a very difficult question which has no clear answers. Everyone’s ideal is different. It’s probably a world one never regrets coming into.

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