Visual Concept for “A journey to Abadyl”

Scenographic notes – Katrine Nilsen – January 2008

Pre concept for “The Pied Pieper” – 05.02.2002
The original concept for “The Pied Piper” was created in 2002 by Katrine Nilsen and Marika Kajo, in connection to the Research project Performance Animation Toolbox at Interactive Institute in Malmo. The idea was then to create a Mood-space that would react to the psycho-social behaviour of the participating audience.

The visual concept consisted of a virtual horizon of the city of Hamlin together with a virtual character that would change shape and appearance according to the configurations and negotiations going on at the physical stage as seen below.

[”The Pied Pieper”, Interactive Institute, Malmo 2002]
New concept material for “A Journey to Abadyl” – 11.01.2009
The city of Abadyl was originally constructed as separate cities which then eventually was merged into one, mixing all their diversity into a big labyrinthine conglomerate of contrasting architecture, infrastructures, history and life styles.

Every part of The City has it’s own characteristic – like the confusing maze of streets and alleys in CAPORIA where you easily (and perhaps willingly) will get lost – or the shabby blinded facades of INDUN where you only sense, but never really get at glimpse of or get access to the life that must be lived in there somewhere.

To live in and find way through this labyrinthine City requires special skills and cooperation.
The scenic concept for A journey to Abadyl is therefore based on two main principles –
1) ‘the anatomy of the choice’ and 2) ‘the Labyrinth as a dramaturgical model’.
The main idea for the staging of A Journey to Abadyl is not to create a complete 3D virtual world, projected into a physical setup – but to construct a physical, partly computer controlled, architectural organism with glimpse of virtual elements – either as video projections or as robotic effects.

The scenography will of cause function as an overall dramaturgic structure where the action takes place – but the scenery might also, both metaphorically and literally, host and even be the leading character – The Spirit of Abadyl – who, represented in different variations of expressions, as a leading “Game Master” sets the rules and decides the consequences of the participant’s actions and choices.

The mood of The Spirit of Abadyl will constantly change and respond to the behaviour of its inhabitants and visitors and according to their choices it will restrict or extend their freedom of action in the installation. Certain arias might suddenly be concealed, while doors into others might open instead. Furthermore every room might change its shape or appearance according to who enters and how they behave.
The scenic installation will be constructed as a basic labyrinthine structure, build around a central chamber containing The Triple-I.
The Triple-I being some kind of a illuminated lighthouse, a globe or a floating sphere, that can be observed from everywhere in the labyrinth, always showing the state and mood of The Spirit of Abadyl.

The general expression will be based on the principles of “systematic chaos”, where irregular bits and pieces are put together like a big jigsaw puzzle.

Part of the ‘houses’ will be carved out of or grow inside and outside each other like strange organic or crystals formations.

Some of the walls will be constructed as moveable set-pieces and sliding doors installed on tracks and gliders – which if possible will be controlled by the computer system – so that the labyrinth eventually will change during the session, according to the events taking place in it.

[“Les Cités Obscures”, Peeters & Schuiten]

The basic material of the labyrinth will most likely be unpainted or perhaps recycled plywood, though certain parts might be made of translucent or white fibre glass, Plexiglas or organza.
All text and graphics will be printed directly on the walls or applied as light or video projections. The leading colours will be black, white, dark grey, yellow and red. The colour of the video projections might be tinted sepia – as old photographs.
The video projections could both be used as full-framed back-projections of 3D sceneries or it could be front-projections where a specific detail or a character virtually will be given life within the physical scenery.
Peepholes, openings, hatchways, buttons and handles will give access to the different parts and events within the labyrinth.
Each part of Abadyl will be presented in the Labyrinth according to the dramatic plot it represent. Some City parts will be staged purely by video projections while others will be staged through physical sceneries, light, soundscapes and robotic features. But each scenery will physically or virtually represent a challenge that symbolize a dilemma or a dramaturgic problem that, according to the storyline, has to be solved to take the participants through the installation and to the outcome of the story. Each task and every choice made in relation to them will therefore have vital consequences for how the whole group of participants will be able to solve the core “problem(s)”.

Example 1: CAPORIA – A chaotic “Labyrinth” of roads and buildings.
A lot of small cells connected by doors – perhaps sliding or swing doors. There are only room for one person in each cell, so each participants has to pass the labyrinth on their own. Every time a door opens in one cell, a door closes in another cell. Perhaps some doors might even open and close depending on the “value” of the participant’s Tag (Status), which means that certain doors will only ever open on the behalf of someone special. So, to successfully find way and pass through the Labyrinth, communication and cooperation with the participants in the other cells is recommendede.

Example 2: Trailer Park – An unstable and undermined ground.
To pass through this room the participants has to step over a floor constructed as a floating iceflake or another similar flexible and unstable material as for instance the madras of a water bed – either as fragmented ‘flakes’ or as one large surface.

The floor ‘register’ how you pass it – are you only concerned on how to get your self through or do you perhaps choose to cooperate with and help the others through? Every step might have vital influence on which door opens on the other end of the room.

Example 3: TRAORA – The notorious Jukebox sect.
A room full of payphones with a direct ‘Hotline’ to the Oracle. Here you can get vital guidance when you are stuck – if only you manage to decipher the cryptic message of cause. But every call comes with a price – a part of your lifetime, your left hand or the special skill you just earned – is it worth it?