An ugly bag becomes a swan

Now that the country has been declared safe from terrorism (again), get out and see a show. How about seeing a show from Israel, just to maintain the Middle Eastern theme?
Yael Rasooly, Ari Teperberg and Inbal Yomtovian will be presenting three shows in one, in fact, in Hua Hin this weekend and Bangkok on Tuesday, courtesy of the Israeli embassy and their country’s foreign ministry.
Teperberg and Yomtovian are together known as the Golden Delicious Theatre. As part of the trio’s presentation “A Chair and A Table”, they’ll perform “The Blue Table” and “Jonathan”.
Rasooly was at last year’s Bangkok Fringe Festival with “Paper Cut”, which garnered rave reviews, and in this triptych is presenting “How Lovely!” It’s “one of my earliest creations”, she says.
“There’s some humour, playfulness and irony, but it’s much darker than ‘Paper Cut’. I want to take the audience on a journey full of twists and turns.
“‘Paper Cut’, even with its underlying theme of pain, is uplifting and downright fun, but ‘How Lovely’ is a harsh story about sexual abuse and family secrets. I’ve set it at a distance, in a fairytale world of magic and dangerous traps.”
Rasooly warns that it’s not suitable for children.
The Golden Delicious Theatre’s “Blue Table” has been called “zoological object theatre”, in which plastic bags become swans and floor rugs turn into snails.
“Jonathan” is described as “a wild, cinematic piece for apples, a set of knives and a cutting board”.
“A ready-made object is charged with a great amount of information,” Yomtovian explains. “What is it? What is it used for? What is it made of? Who will use it? Is it fragile, strong, new, unique?
Consider the apple, he says.
“It might carry references to cultural myths, like the Garden of Eden, or legends, as in ‘Snow White’, or history, as in Isaac Newton. Its name might even take us to another place, like the Big Apple.
“Then there are its physical possibilities – it can be cut, peeled, baked, smashed or rolled off the stage – and its restrictions – it will never walk or talk. We consider all this information and then decide what image or character is right for it.”
Neither of the duo’s mini-plays is designed for children, Yomtovian says, but “children who’ve seen them enjoyed them greatly. Children have a much more visual way of looking at things, while adults get attached to the cultural contexts.”
The three Israelis will also give a free public lecture and conduct a workshop on Tuesday afternoon at Chulalongkorn University.
Rasooly says she strives to promote “this fantastic medium of adult puppetry and object theatre. I hope to change what people usually have in mind when they think of puppets.” They’ll screen short videos of the leading artists in this field, who are mostly Europeans.
“I’ll also talk about being an independent theatre creator – the struggles, the freedom of expression and the possibilities. We’ll offer a glimpse of object theatre and its ‘dare to play’ approach.
 “And who knows, there might be someone there who says, ‘Yes, this is what I desire to do. This meets my needs for expressing myself.’ I remember the moment that happened to me, when I was feeling quite trapped and lost in other things I was doing and studying. It was like coming home!”
“For us,” Yomtavian adds, “object theatre is an invitation to play the imagining game. It’s not about reality or illusion – it’s an unwritten contract between the public and the artists. The observer becomes an active part of the piece, and when the object is presented, it’s a pleasure to play and imagine together.”

3 TALES, 2 CITIES
Part of the Fringe Festival, “A Chair and a Table” is at the Vic Hua Hin on Saturday at 7.30pm. Tickets cost Bt500 to Bt900 (half price for students). Call (032) 827 814.
Part of World Performances @ Drama Chula, on Tuesday, the lecture is at 3:30pm, the workshop 4:30pm, and the show 7pm..
Find out more at www.VicHuaHin.com and at “Drama Arts Chula” on Facebook.