M1 Singapore Fringe Festival: SAME SAME
Taking cues from the silent film genius Buster Keaton, known for his wonderfully disastrous physical comedy and deadpan humour, “SAME SAME” takes the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival’s spotlight to explore the mundanity and absurdity of life…
We sat down with Belgian choreographer Karine Ponties about her upcoming show at the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival, “SAME SAME”. Ponties gave us the inside scoop on her collaboration with Czech creative dancer Tereza Ondrová and theatre director Petra Tejnorová…
Image credit: Vojtěch Brtnický
So, how did “SAME SAME” come about? For Ponties, it began with the essence of Buster Keaton’s work—his grippingly dry humour: “I love [his] character, a physical disaster but with a completely neutral face. It’s that contradiction I’m interested in.” She honed in on the physicality of Keaton’s uniquely specific, yet universal comedy, “I’m interested in the theatricality in the movement. Everybody has a body, but we sometimes forget...”
Image credit: Vojtěch Brtnický
Performers Ondrová and Tejnorová weren’t seasoned in physical comedy, but displayed a natural flair for slapstick, embracing the joy of jesting. During rehearsals they playfully experimented, improvising around the same gag for hours, pushing each other to new comedic heights. “We went for Buster Keaton’s absurdity”, explains Ponties.
Image credit: Vojtěch Brtnický
“SAME SAME” sees Ponties seamlessly blending Belgian wit with Czech charm, a testament to her broader approach that involves collaboration across diverse cultural backgrounds. “I'm interested in humanity. Each colour, each background, each gender.” This focus, she explains, reveals a primal, animalistic quality that makes the work more sincere. “Not looking [at] what are you doing, but just doing it. Animals don't look… they just do.”
Image credit: Vojtěch Brtnický
Ponties’ fascination with the way humans experience their environment is reminiscent of Keaton’s recurrent themes: “Keaton is always in big landscapes alone and he's fighting with his place in the world.” How does this resonate with a modern audience? It’s a proposition, she muses: “to face our absurdities. Sometimes we are doing things that are not for us, and we continue, continue, continue, continue to do it.”
Image credit: Vojtěch Brtnický
Yet it’s not all about dwelling in the never-ending tragedy of modern life. Keaton’s physical comedy serves as a tool to encourage a deep reflection on life’s struggles while providing an antidote to them, one LOL at a time. “It's not a big message”, Ponties observes, “just the absurdity of our lives and the tragedy where we live. And for that, we need a lot of humour.”
Image credit: Vojtěch Brtnický
Catch “SAME SAME” on the 20th and 21st of January at the Esplanade Theatre Studio as part of the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival, followed by a performance in Brussels this June.
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