I attended Cargo: Kuala Lumpur Singapore earlier this week, part of the Singapore Arts Festival 2010. Cargo is conceptualized by the group Rimini Protokoll from Germany. They started a trend for reality theatre that basically combines performance and reality. Cargo is a project that has been transplanted in different cities like Japan and more than 29 cities in Europe and the Middle East. Cargo KL-Singapore is situated in Singapore but simulates a journey from Malaysia to Singapore via the Causeway.
The audience are put on a cargo truck and the performance space is the surrounding.
This is our truck. The windows are clear and we can look through it. Inside there is also projectors and pull-down screens to showcase videos.
We started the journey from the Esplanade Waterfront carpark to the PSA cluster at Harbourfront and Jurong and then back to Esplanade. They employed two truckers as performers — they tell us about their jobs and their families, delivering a slice of life less known to us arty farty theatregoers. We also gained accessed to various areas in PSA that are not opened to public, which was an eye-opener.
Overall I felt it was a very interesting project. I have never attended anything like this – where reality is somehow recoded and presented rather than perceived. I also learnt more about the work of truckers and logistics in general. It was a theatrical experience as well as a learning journey all rolled in one. This is possibly one show in the Festival not to miss.
Cargo is on most evenings throughout the festival, but seats are limited by the truck capacity so book your tickets early!
