In Jewish folklore 'The Golem' is a clay figure which is brought to life by magic. At Adelaide Festival, 'Golem' is a deliciously dark dystopian fable.
Like a giant graphic novel come to life, the universally acclaimed stage production follows Robert, a binary coder by day, performance-shy punk rocker by night. An Australian premiere by the United Kingdom's 1927, the super slick synthesis of handmade animation, claymation, live music and stylised performance is a reminder that the danger lies not in machines replicating humans but humans replicating machines.
Drawing on the myth of 'The Golem', 1927's original story examines the relationship between an extraordinarily ordinary man, and his Golem. Set in a fictional yet familiar world, technology and the market economy have evolved to a point of transcending the boundaries of human control. Golems have become the must-have, indispensible ingredient for a better life. But their existence, threatens the prospect of those who created it.
Writer and Director of 'Golem', Suzanne Andrade is thrilled to bring the production down under:When did you first hear the folklore of 'The Golem'? Who told it to you?
We came to it via the Meyrink book, then the silent film of 'Der Golem', before going back to the source and researching the original myth down at the British library.
What did you find in your research of Golems that you drew upon for this production or that you found interesting?
We kept being steered towards artificial intelligence and robots, 'progress' kept coming up and convenience. The use of technology to make our lives 'easier'.
How do you think 'Golem' relates to society around the world today?
Well, we increasingly use our technologies to make life easier, more convenient, freeing us up to...? what? Shop more? Follow our friends obsessively? Waste hours online? Our show 'Golem' is a dystopian look at where our reliance on technology could begin to distort our humanity.
What adaptions did you make to the legend? What is a Golems intended use?A Golem in our show show is designed to obey your command, what we did with the original myth is to explore what happens when that chain of command is interrupted. So I think I'm in control of my Golem, but am I?
Do you think a Golem would be useful if they existed? Would you have one?
Yes, they would be very useful I suppose. Though it depends who manufactured them and how noble their aims were. No doubt they would be manufactured by someone without scruples. A Jeff Bezos-type character.
What implications arise from the mythical being?
There's something omnipotent about the myth and about all myths, they stand the test of time and can be applied to any time, they have a universality. Mythical characters can morph (like clay) to fit a contemporary narrative, yet they help retain a quality of mystery, imagination, something not quite of this world. This can be a very effective way of making a comment about our world.
What about Robert, what's his story?
Geeky guy, happy life, wonky and human and slightly chaotic. Golem changes all that. Robert feels better, looks better, dresses better, but the other people around him disagree.
How does he come to own a Golem?
He buys it from his inventor friend Phil.
{youtube}ELsst1Xy2WQ{/youtube}
Tell us about the set design; did you envision bringing multiple medias together to create this production?
Yep, this is what we do in all our shows. The clay was an addition based specifically on the Golem. But all 1927 shows are a carefully balanced blend of the above elements, its a very collaborative process.
What's most exciting about premiering your work in another country?
The reception is always different, and it's exciting to see the response in new places. Plus we get very inspired for our new shows.
'Golem' performs Adelaide Festival Centre 8-13 March as part of Adelaide Festival which runs 26 February - 14 March.
