Oráculos

Anyone considering attending Oráculos should not read this review, or anything about it, beforehand. Simply take yourself, with a question, and an open mind and heart. Now, please stop reading.

On one level like a Magic 8 Ball writ large, on another a wonderland stroll through the dark tea time of the soul, Oráculos amazes, confuses, asks and answers, in the most personal performance experience possible.

From the moment of arrival, to a darkened building with signs calling for silence everywhere, whispering attendants checking tickets and cloaking bags, the magic began. Each participant entered Oráculos alone, at approximately 10-minute intervals, and the time spent waiting was the time where the hurly burly of the day fell away, senses started to sharpen and details became more prominent. Preparing a question was the key to open the door, taking one into a labyrinth and the most intense hour of performance and discovery.

The labyrinth was constructed from different materials throughout, in some places becoming a construct entirely within one’s imagination (it did get very dark at points). Participants interacted with performers in one-on-one scenarios, one of the first stops with a cobbler who removed the shoes and checked that the question considered was “a good one”. The absence of shoes enhanced the experience, the full experience of scent, texture, sound being opened up by the feel of bare feet travelling over different surfaces, from crushed velvet to sand, at different parts of the journey. Another encounter was with a fortune teller, who introduced the motif of tarot cards, which then turned up in various settings, giving an extra dimension to the consideration of the individual’s question.

Many of the performers did not speak a word, continuing the great silence from the initial arrival. Some scenes did not have another person present, but called for poetry to be written or a still life to be contemplated, providing points for pause and reflection. The absence of speech from many scenes, the eye contact of an intensity usually avoided and THE physical touch of strangers for most could be challenging, but fit well with the sensation of journeying into the unknown. Many of the performers were themselves embodying symbols, leaving the participant to ponder the significance of their actions or inactions.

Travelling through the labyrinth was in itself an experience to be cherished, the thought that the journey is more important than the destination coming to mind. The joy of finding the way in the dark in the ultimate rainy day cubbyhouse, blankets hanging close around, not knowing what will come next, tapped into many layers of memory. At points the path seemed to end, but then continued with guiding hands, diagrams or lights providing a way ahead.

A parallel motif to the tarot cards was the gradual growth of a grain of wheat to a plant and from there the human process of creation that resulted in grain becoming fresh bread. Depending on the question being carried, this slow unfolding of growth may seem an obvious metaphor out of the context of the rest of the performance, but carried deep resonance as it appeared alongside the myriad other symbols. Participants were bombarded with sensations and experiences, making association with their own thoughts as profound or as superficial as the individual chose to make it.

The skill of the players was their focus on each person as they come through, presenting participants with gifts that helped at later points. As a reviewer, this led to frustration at the inability of knowing what each person experienced – surely the performers’ motions cannot be exactly the same each time? What happens when someone tries to deviate from the interactive script? In my case I tried to leave a scene too early, and ended up dancing with the devil in the dark… or was that part of the scene all along? But then, as a participant, this was a non-issue as knowing that the mental and emotional journey depends on what you bring with you when you are empty-handed and willing to place your trust in total strangers in a strange place leads to delight in knowing that the experience of each person is unique.

It was hard to fault the presentation on any level. Oráculos has been so carefully developed it cannot help being an intense voyage of self-discovery for some, possibly a play in the dark for others, and a sense of wonder and adventure for all. Lack of a clear independent narrative may irritate some more literal-minded attendees, but that would be based on false preconceptions or expectations. Those inclined to analysis may feel that they can see through the tricks of association (the more abstract the question carried through, the more connections it may be possible to make, leading to a more profoundly affecting experience), but it would be churlish to quibble, as the sense of the work as a whole is intensely moving.

Having initially said that you should not read this review unless you will not attend Oráculos, now that you have… if the opportunity should arise, please do take the chance and immerse yourself in the intensely personal spectacle that has arisen from the vision of Enrique Vargas and Teatro de los Sentidos.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

2012 Perth Festival presents
Oráculos
Teatro de los Sentidos
Directed by Enrique Vargas

Masonic Hall, Nedlands
10 February – 3 March 2012
Info: www.perthfestival.com.au