A non-fiction book exploring theories of transhumanism is not the first thing that comes to mind when considering works to adapt for theatre – but co-directors Ben Kidd and Bush Moukarzel have never shied away from a challenge. Their latest work, set to premiere as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival 2020, is an adaptation of Mark O’Connell’s 2017 novel To Be A Machine, which explores the idea of living without the hindrance of a body.
“Ben and I met at Nottingham University through the drama society”, Moukarzel tells The University Times. “As with so many things in life, it just sort of happened by accident”, adds Kidd describing the partnership. Moukarzel goes on to explain how the initial desire to direct, as he sees it, came out of “the concern for every element” of the production, such as light or sound, and how they harmonise with each other.
Kidd and Moukarzel formed their theatre company, Dead Centre, in 2012, and have worked together ever since. They are no strangers to tackling more unprecedented material, having recently adapted Freud’s The Interpretation of Dreams into a theatre piece that premiered in Vienna. “With non-fiction, the adaptation becomes a particularly creative task, because you have to find the dramatic journey”, Markouzel explains. “There’s an unconscious narrative to be brought to the surface.”
This version of O’Connell’s To Be A Machine is aptly titled To Be A Machine (version 1.0), as changes had to be made to accommodate the lack of a live audience. “We hadn’t planned the pandemic – just to get that out there”, Moukarzel jokes. The production wasn’t originally conceived as a digital event, he explains, but having said that, the company has always tried to create a unique audience experience and “problematise” the relationship between the audience and the stage. In the past, the company has utilised creative tools such as audience headphones and participation to “investigate and upend” the “traditional strategies” of theatre. The story of transhumanism, Kidd explains, casts the body as a problem that needs to be overcome, so when it was reconceived under the conditions of coronavirus, the company “made a virtue of that problem” by reimagining the show with a virtually uploaded audience.
While the initial production was always conceived as a work-in-progress that would be further developed later in the year, the ongoing restrictions and spare time afforded by the initial months of lockdown benefitted the overall production. “We didn’t just go: ‘Fuck, let’s do something”, says Moukarzel with a laugh, “but this version is the part that took us by surprise”. Kidd agrees, admitting that it felt good to be making something and to be engaging creatively at a time when he was spending so long “just sitting in [his] flat, staring at the walls”. He describes the ability to bring a piece of art out into the world as “a privilege”, adding that he considers himself someone who prefers actively making something rather than just thinking about it.
Kidd and Moukarzel have effectively utilised the spare time the pandemic has afforded them to produce a cutting-edge theatre experience for Irish audiences. To Be A Machine (version 1.0) will show online at 7.30pm from October 1st to 3rd and again from October 6th to 10th, with previews on September 30th. Tickets are €12–15 and can be booked via the Dublin Theatre Festival website. Once you upload a video of yourself for the virtual audience, you will be emailed a link to the show.
