Virus Theatre

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Since my teenage years, I have been trying to photograph dramatic events, wars, revolutions. 

Recently, maybe I am getting older, maybe I pushed that quest to the end, my interest has shifted. 

I am increasingly looking for the “fake”. Reenactments. Rehearsals. Representations.

All under the very vague term of “War Games”. Kriegsspiele. Jeux de Guerre.

Earlier this year in February I spent a week photographing the training of the US border academy in New Mexico. Shortly after this, I was meant to return to California to spend time at a Veteran TV channel that does low- budget Afghanistan/Iraq deployment productions.

Then the virus hit.

On March 12th, the night President Macron declared the upcoming state of emergency I was at a theatre in the Parisian suburb of Cery-Pontoise photographing what would become the last theatre in months, a performance of a play by Julian Hetzel, “All Inclusive”. It juxtaposes art and war, tourists and refugees, reality and imagination. 

The audience lives the visit through a museum where reality strikes back.

This was also the day I saw elbow-greeting for the first time.

Then came the lockdown.

I pretty much spent all the lockdown staring into my computer and deep-diving into exploring this new ZOOM world.

My work on War Games came to a halt.

There is an increasing number of ZOOM based theatre though. Without going into details, but “A School for Life” by the Belarus Free Theatre has been one of the most fascinating ones.

And now the world has gradually opened up again. The virus is still everywhere. We don’t know what’s gonna be next. But some travel has become possible.

On Friday (14.8.2020) I went on my first trip in more than five months.

Paris has just moved back into the “red zone”. Most people wear masks. Even on the street. Brits are fleeing back to the island before the 14 days quarantine is imposed.

I took the train to Zurich.

With every meter away from the train station there are only occasional masks left.

On the surface, all seems very normal. Fading distance stickers on floors. 

Small details.

I had an appointment to photograph in the Red Fabric theatre. “VIRUS” a simulation game by Yan Duyvendak, a Dutch artist and performer.

In 2018 inspired by a realistic pandemic scenario which was developed by the EU as an exercise for governments and hospitals in Africa in collaboration with scientists and game developers Yan and his team created a scientifically validated simulation game and started to perform in late 2019. 

Then the virus hit.

It is now on for the first time in Zurich after the outbreak of the pandemic.

I decided to participate as any other audience member.

At the theatre real strict social distancing and hygiene measures, masks, disinfecting, were fully in place.

Each spectator could choose a vest that made them part of the Government (red), Security (blue), Science (orange), the Press (pink), Food Supplies (green), Health (yellow) and the Civilian Population (white).

I chose Press (pink).

In every group, players were given different scenarios, guidelines, duties and tasks to respond to and decisions to make. With each decision, the scenario changed.

The complicated aim was to keep the death toll low.

In crisis management meetings between the different groups, the scenario moved forward. According to the decisions taken by us.

Borders were closed. Schools were closed. Assembly prohibited. The economy got rescue packages…

The death toll kept rising.

People amongst us started to die.

At the end of the game, we had “achieved” scenario #3 out of 4 possible outcomes.

45% of the world’s population has died. A military dictatorship is in place.

Next week they are performing at a Festival in Hamburg. They expect to do better.

Paris, 16.8.2020