On the Edge of the Perceptible: Microacting, imaginary worlds and cognitive estrangement in virtual performance
Olga Krasa-Ryabets · Performance Research · 2021
Microacting is a performance technique originated by the author in 2009 in collaboration with the jazz vibraphonist/actor Krystof Krasa, with subsequent contribution from neuroscientist Inna Tsirlin. It plays with the irregularities in human perception to build collectively imagined spaces, usually in a domestic setting. This text – part scholarly article, part research-as-practice reflection – contextualizes the latest series of experiments in perception and microacting brought about by the framework of the COVID-19 pandemic. We build imaginary worlds by inducing processes of cognitive deterritorialization. In the absence of normally available techniques due to the pandemic, we have been experimenting with how far our audience can carry the imaginative process on their own. During a series of virtual workshops conducted during the pandemic, the participants were guided via Zoom by an unseen voice through a perceptional de/reconstruction of their homes. The resulting observations along with the imaginary maps created by the participants are presented in the article.