Lazy Technology
Recently I’ve been trying to think about this word ‘Technology’ a bit less lazily than normal.
What do I mean by it? How do I use the word?
Well, it seems I use it constantly, and I use it to cover all manner of stuff, and I use it with different meanings and implications in different circumstances. I haven’t exactly surveyed myself, but I’ve tried to be a bit more aware…
There’s the stuff I do to communicate about my work. To show people what it is that we’re up to – social media, digitized trailer type stuff, immediate updates. This blog post. The sort of mortar I seem to cram into the spaces between bricks of time, which never seems to have quite long enough to go off.
Then there’s the stuff that deliberately and visibly integrates technology into the performance. Perhaps I do less of this – but I’m thinking of someone like the choreographer Alex Whitley (www.alexanderwhitley.com), or the company 1927 (www.19-27.co.uk)
And then there’s the stuff that supports and intensifies the level of experience the audience achieve. Its invisible (ish), and its what enables magic to feel like its in the air. This is stuff I’m really interested in. - invisible stage management - artistic guiding - a building responding to your presence - the magic of everyday technology doing extraordinary things
I suppose what I’m realizing, is that the use of the word ‘technology’ allows many of us to be lazy – and I’m lodged in the lazy category, no doubt about that. We assume that the magic word will increase access to funding, engage us with a younger audience, engage us with a wider audience online…
When I was younger, I learned that (a different) magic word did indeed increase my chances of getting ice cream, staying overnight at a friend’s house, or even experimenting with melting crisp packets into tiny doll size versions in the oven. It wasn’t 100% successful. (The use of “please”, not the use of the oven – the crisp packets are invariably a success unless your oven is too hot). But I also now use the term “please” ubiquitously without thinking. I’m trying to put a bit more thought into the use of “technology”.
Thoughts?