Live Performance and Technology: The Example of Jet Lag
PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art, Jan. 2002, v. 24, no. 1, pp. 133-139
In a form of hybrid theatre, Jet Lag, by Builders Association and Diller+Scofidio, combines live action, live and recorded video, animation, music, and text. The first part of the piece tells the story of Donald Crowhurst, an electrician who participated in a sailing race around the world in 1969, but ended up sailing in circles off the coast of South America, while maintaining fake logs that declared he was winning the race, and eventually throwing himself off his boat and drowning. Jet Lag also tells the true story of Sarah Ackerman, a woman who kidnapped her grandson and flew with him over the Atlantic 167 times over six months. The piece uses video to emulate seascapes, airports, airplane interiors, surveillance cameras, and to serve as a diary log for the delusional sea captain. Jet Lag can be read as an investigation into the impact of technology on our lives.
ITEM 2002.211 – available for viewing in the Research Centre
Videos, Artworks and Artists Cited
Jet Lag – Builders Association and Diller+Scofidio