LAB: Research Theatre Company (part two) - Creating a dialogue with the audience

Abstract

The research project LAB: Research Theatre Company (part two) - Creating a Dialogue with the Audience was designed to investigate the dramaturgical development of the theatre show Alfonsina (and the theme of immigration) through audience feedback. The show was performed in four different places/contexts and selected audience members were invited to reflect and to express their reading/understanding of plot, theatre language, social and political questions and the philosophy of the company. The research revealed that all focus groups perceived the dialectics of the immigration experience and its contradictions in different degrees. Our goal was to see how this conversation with the audience could become a further step towards the development of the story and the technical side of the performance. In conclusion, the project was successful in achieving the desired result. The script of Alfonsina was adjusted several times as a result of the conversations with the audience; the audience was almost a co-creator in a sense that they were active in participating in the process of developing the show.