The power of money
Democrazy Studio's "Plan B: shows that hierarchy reigns supreme
Being able to choose a seat from a seat plan is well nigh impossible at Democrazy Studio though as the space is so small and every seat affords much the same view, it has never affected my viewing pleasure. So it was with some surprise that I was able to pick one at the “Plan B” box office last month. Once inside, though, I was quick to notice that the seats had yet to be placed on the audience stand and that actor Kwin Bhichitkul, attired all in black, had morphed into the usher, calling out the seat numbers, most of which were not booked, and putting the chairs on the stand accordingly, albeit not exactly as the seating plan dictated.
We hadn’t been seated for more than a few moments when a public announcement through the loudspeakers, in Thai and English, asked us to leave our seats. A new seating arrangement was then organised, rather in the style of a plane-boarding process where pregnant women and handicapped people are called first followed by the more elderly. Kwin felt I belonged in this latter category and allowed me to take my new seat – not the one I had booked –and shortly afterwards even offered me comfortable seat cushion!
As the evening wore on, the conditions set by the invisible power behind the microphone continued to vary. Those of us with comfortable seats, while uncertain whether we would soon lose them, were, for example, “those who drive supercars and never have difficulty finding parking space at department stores”, “those who receive more than eight months worth of bonus”, and “those wearing a watch worth more than Bt10,000”. The others had either to stand or sit on the floor, or on the mats Kwin would bring in after he finished mopping the floor.
In this way, each member of the audience had a different perspective and perception of the performance and each evening differed completely. For me, two moments stood out. The first was when a young man with an enormous bonus (especially when compared to my zero bonus), and thus fit the condition for a chair, preferred to sit on the floor with his friends. The second was when a friend of his offered to help Kwin with his cleaning.
“Plan B” is a simple and entertaining yet thought-provoking interactive work that keeps the audience’s limbs as well as their brains active at all times, both during and after the performance.
The professional directorial debut of Peerapol Kijruenpiromsuk and inspired by his research on homeless people, delivered much to think about, to discuss among ourselves and to relate to the society in which we live while his main message was conveyed clearly and soundly. Evidently, unlike many other directors or playwrights, he doesn’t want to stuff his own thoughts into his work and convince you to agree with them.
I for one will be looking forward to more works from this Democrazy member in the future in addition to those by multi-award winning director Thanapol Virulhakul.
Walking back to my car after the performance, I thought of how excited I was some 20 years ago to be leaving Thailand to live in the US for the first time. My idea of “All men are created equal” was such that, as naive as I was and thanks to all the Hollywood films I had watched, I wanted to permanently move there and realise my own American dream.
It took me just two weeks to realise that Hollywood had sold me a lie.
This year, Democrazy has a big international collaboration project and is already working with German actors, a dramaturg and producer on a new work “Happy Hunting Ground”. Supported by the Goethe Institut, it’s set to premiere in September here and then travel to Germany.
Prior to that, Thanapol’s “Hipster the King”– the biggest winner of AICT Thailand Awards 2014 and last seen at Offene Welt festival in Ludwigshafen, Germany – will be, along with B-Floor’s “Red Tanks”, part of Ueno Store House’s “Thailand Week” in Tokyo from February 24 to 28. They need our financial support to make this possible, and we can help by either bidding in an auction of “Hipster” character portraits, ongoing now online, or attending the fundraising performance tomorrow at 8pm. The suggested donation for the performance ticket is Bt3,000, but this is “sabai sabai” country, so you can always pay what you can.
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