The Lady from the Sea - "spend a penny" cultural event
Host project, MDes Interior Design GSA
February 2023 - May 2023
This project is the output of my second-semester project, which involved identifying and visualizing the 'Host' for a utilitarian site that stands aloof from its environment. My proposal is for an immersive art event at the Minerva Street Victorian public toilets, which aims to transform this opaque structure into a cohesive space that can tell a story.
I chose to narrate Henrik Ibsen’s theater play “The Lady from the Sea”. Like Minerva Street public toilets, the heroes in this theater play have a dual nature, and their lives develop in two levels - the conscious and the subconscious, the exposed and the hidden. In this play, the heroes are trapped in their personal and social lies, staying in their personal safe zones and moving in a limited space.
I will attempt to renegotiate the relationship between the audience and the stage. Inspired by Bertolt Brecht’s approach to the significance of the stage, my intention is to eliminate the abyss that separates the actors from the audience, like the dead from the living, and increase illusions. Additionally, I am interested in exploring how the audience enters the theater space. Are they ready to fully understand the theater play? How could a shift in the spatial relationship between the audience and the play help the viewer become a part of the narrative and better understand the characters’ evolution? What if we aren’t just entering the theater orchestra? What if, before being the audience, we can be a part of this narration?
ABOUT THE EVENT...
The event “Spend a Penny” is a fictional co-production of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Glasgow Cultural Association, with the aim of reviving Scotland’s public toilets and transforming them into art spaces.
The show “Lady from the Sea” is not an ordinary production. You can purchase the publication of the play as you buy your ticket. Note that the experience will not be the same if you do not read it beforehand.
The event is divided into two parts. Before the start of the performance, you have one hour to meet the characters of the play, touch their personal belongings, and listen to the sounds of their subconscious. You are free to move around the space and leave as many times as you wish. During the show, please remain in the designated stage area and help the actors with your attitude. Remember you are part of the play.
Please note that the event contains nudity. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
MEET THE CHARACTERS -
characters inner space
ACT 1. Doctor Wangel's House
SCENE.—DOCTOR WANGEL’S house, with a large verandah garden in front of and around the house. A warm and brilliantly clear summer morning.
ACT 1. Sailor’s Wife is Sleeping
The young wife of a sailor, who lies sleeping in strange unrest, and she is dreaming. I fancy I shall do it so that you will see she is dreaming.
Τhere’s to be another figure. It’s her husband, to whom she has been faithless while he was away, and he is drowned at sea. It is night-time. And he is standing by her bed looking at her. He is to stand there dripping wet, like one drawn from the sea.
ACT 3. Sea Creatures
dry land.
our home.
I think that if only men had from the beginning accustomed themselves to live on the sea, or in the sea perhaps, we should be more perfect than we are—both better and happier.
too late to make good the mistake now.
men instinctively feel something of this themselves. And they bear it about with them as a secret regret and sorrow.
ACT 5. The Decition
Ellida That changes everything.
(The ship bell rings again.)
The Stranger. Do you hear, Ellida? It has rung now for the last time. Come.
ANALYSIS
You can read the full analysis here:
“Conscious world”
“Subconscious world”
Minerva Street Public toilet
Minerva street Victorian public toilets could be any Victorian public toilet. This space is a collage of elements and fragmented realities that come together to generate a solid space and narrate a story. In order to understand what constitutes the Victorian public toilet space and how it can be correlated with the universe of the play, I conducted extensive research on Victorian public toilets throughout the UK. From my research, I found that bathroom units and tiles create the overall atmosphere of the space. Therefore, I decided to use urinals, bathroom sinks, basins, and cisterns as my basic tools for narrating my story.
Materiality Board
The rotated box as a tool for passage from consciousness to unconsciousness.
If we were sea creatures living in the sea, our natural environment would not require us to wear clothes in order to survive. We would be free to move and exist in the water without any need for clothing. However, as humans, we have adapted to living on land and require clothing to protect ourselves from the elements and maintain our body temperature. Clothing can represent various things, including social status, cultural identity, and personal expression. It can also be seen as a symbol of consciousness, as it is often associated with the daily duties and responsibilities of everyday life. In the context of the play, the large, light wrap that Ellida wears can be interpreted as a symbol of transition from the conscious to the unconscious. As she gradually separates herself from the wrap, she may be shedding the constraints of reality and embracing a more imaginative, dreamlike state. This interpretation is open to various perspectives and can be further explored through the themes and motifs of the play. Because of her young age, Hilda is spontaneous and shares more similarities with sea creatures. As a result, her costume is a mixture of nudity and clothing. On the other hand Boletta, as the elder sister, has adopted a more responsible stance throughout her life, which makes her feel stuck in her small hometown, surrendering to everyday duties. Therefore, her costume is formal and modest. Only in Act 3, when she finally gets in touch with her true feelings and desires, does she come a step closer to sea creatures and nudity.