Francesca Forristal and Jordan Paul Clarke in Public Domain at Southwark Playhouse, London. Picture: The Other Richard
Public Domain was broadcast via live-stream from Southwark Playhouse, London.
Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩
Public Domain has had its first outing, live-streamed from Southwark Playhouse. Writers Francesca Forristal (book, lyrics) and Jordan Paul Clarke (music/lyrics/orchestrations) were hard at work a year ago on a show about searching for authentic forms of connection online – and then everything else happened and they have basically developed the show in lockdown since. Every word of the text is apparently taken from YouTube videos, real Tweets, or Instagram posts – some as recent as two weeks ago and there is a long list of vloggers credited at the end of the show.
Forristal and Clarke also perform the show as would-be influencers Millie and Z – and also as Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan who feature majorly as characters. If you already follow what is going on in social media not much in this show will be new to you but it’s sharp, clear and well performed. What I found the most interesting is how it is presented online. The performers themselves barely interact onstage, and just have plastic chairs as a set, but a lot is added to the livestream of this text.
It’s not a filmed version of the live show – it’s also a digital piece of art and the live performances – and the music and indeed the movement direction by George Lyons – are all only part of it. The live-streamed show is not the same production you would see in the theatre. Director and producer Adam Lenson is certainly experimenting with the live-stream format – and the results are good. The production also makes what they are doing look relatively easy and I suspect it’s really not. Additional credit goes to Matt Powell as video designer/associate director and Joe and Nikki Davison from Auburn Jam Music for music production/supervision/additional orchestrations.
As the show is basically about the internet and performed on the internet it’s the perfect vehicle for technical experimentation and innovation in this format and well worth seeing. And you can!
An encore stream of Public Domain will be available to view from 19-31 January 2021.
Clare Walters
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