Behaviour 2014: Let's Misbehave

With a programme stretching over two months, and containing work so thematically and aesthetically diverse, it seems difficult to pick a starting point for a discussion of Behaviour Festival. Perhaps, to paraphrase the song, the best place to start is at the very beginning.

Behaviour 2014 will kick off on 6 March with Bryony Kimmings’ Credible Likeable Superstar Rolemodel and Rosana Cade's Sister. While Cade is a local artist, this is a piece that has not been seen before; at Arches Live 2013 it was still a work in progress. Both Cade and Kimmings seem to have created pieces about feminist identity – a topic that always seems to spark debate, since some types of feminism don't subscribe to the idea of intersectionality; that is, that a woman will not just face institutionalised prejudice and sexism because of her gender, but also because of her background – e.g. migrant, sexual orientation, religion, trans/cisgender status, race, etc.

It seems inevitable that these two performances will be compared, although they take on very different considerations about aspects of identity. Kimmings’ Credible Likeable Superstar Rolemodel concerns itself with the modern-day popstar-cum-'accidental' role model, since, like it or not, children do learn from what they see in the world of oversexualised, profit-based media – the most recent example being the Miley Cyrus Wrecking Ball video. With help from her niece, aged nine, Kimmings tries to come up with a role model who feels genuine, and encourages individuality.

“A role model is someone that shows you a direction, inspires you, makes you feel safe and want to develop your skills,” Kimmings explains. “The problem with a lot of popular culture is that these people are very limited in terms of class, race and disability. For girls, add on top of this that most influential women are treated abhorrently by the press, which is a confusing message.” 

While this is a show that primarily concerns itself with role models and pop stars, it could also be seen as a commentary on the social responsibility of the media, as well as that of performers, and people in the public eye.

“No matter what a pop artist thinks they are doing, they are being looked at and mimicked by kids across the world,” Kimmings stresses.

David Greig touched on this during the 2013 Fringe from a more extreme angle in his play The Events, when the main character interrogates a journalist about his book, since the murderer has quoted extensively from it. The uncompassionate response he gives is mirrored by the politician whose party shares identical ideals to the convicted man, but wishes to distance itself from the crime, in case their reputation is tainted. After all, they preach xenophobia, but a 'madman' with a gun who happened to kill ‘foreigners’ was none of their fault.

Applying the idea of social responsibility to art – more specifically, performance – makes things particularly interesting, as the idea of theatre as education has persisted since Aristotle. To what extent is a performer responsible for the conclusions an audience member draws from their performance?

Here to take the assault against the media, politics, and institutionalised sexism further, Cristian Ceresoli's La Merda brings Silvia Gallerano to the stage with a monologue of revelations in four parts. Discussion of stubborness, boulimia, and many other unexpected confessions follows.

Social responsibility and the impact of abuse of the media is also explored extensively in Hate Radio by the International Institute of Political Murder. The UK premiere examines the 1994 Rwandan genocide from inside a radio station that broadcasted some of the most aggressive anti-Tutsi propaganda at the time.

“I decided to tell the story of the Rwandan Genocide (a conflict which includes several millions of people) through the story of this radio station: 16 squared metres for an untellable genocide. The voices of four people to speak the propaganda, the hate,” declares Milo Rau, the scriptwriter and director behind the piece.

In this case, the impact of the propaganda is undeniable; the story has already been written through historical fact – during the genocide, approximately 500,000 to 1,000,000 people were killed. With the 20^th anniversary of the genocide approaching, it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking genocide is a relic of the past but Hate Radio tries to make the theme and the consequences universal.

“I used the sentences used in 1994, but I decided (together with my Rwandan actors) to make that station ‘cooler,’ younger, more postmodern than it was,” explains Rau. “Because I think that it's this postmodern, mashed-up style of Hate Radio that shows the universality (and so to say: the future) of a racist speech.”

This kind of speech tends to address specific groups, often based on a one-sided concept of identity that is both stereotypical and superficial. However, the debate sparked around the Scottish independence referendum has brought national identity to the fore, and the attempt to identify what characteristics Scottish people have in common (beyond location) has spilt over into performance.

Martin O'Connor's Theology explores his own and Glasgow's identity in the face of religion. Looking at Catholic religion, he examines its relation to life in Glasgow. The universality and theatricality of the Catholic mass – from Glasgow to Ireland, to Oslo – seemed a good starting point.

"In attempting to make a piece of theatre about religion in Glasgow I have realised very quickly that it is completely unique to this city, and this is inextricably linked to sectarianism and football," states O'Connor."There is a main thread that runs through Theology that attempts to face up to this fact, ask questions of it and have a bit of fun by using football songs and references."

Speaking of identity, it would be foolish to ignore the Arches' identity as a club/music venue in Glasgow. Perhaps this is why one of the thematic strands in this year's Behaviour Festival gives a platform to the interaction of live music with other artistic/creative disciplines. In May sees Neil Hannon of The Divine Comedy combining forces with the visual mastery of Simon Wainwright, and the musical talents of the Ligeti string quartet to unravel the tale of a man's death. An opera about a man dying of cancer might not sound as noble as Scottish Opera's Macbeth, but it certainly attracts attention to the beauty of everyday life.

The Festival itself will draw to a close in May, with Dark Behaviour. This is a club night curated by 85A, and as Jackie Wylie, the Arches' artistic director, explains:

"We are [also] interested in the intersection of theatre and performance with other art forms. For example I'd like to see our Dark Behaviour event develop – it's a club night that this year is being curated by 85A. We're lucky at the Arches as we are known as much for our live music as our arts programme so we are uniquely placed to programme and create events that merge both."

The highlights of Behaviour Festival 2014 certainly seem promising. As it is a two-month long festival, the ideal path might be to get a festival pass – thus saving some money and having access to all the events as well.