Tuesday 2 October 2012

Feedin' Trolls: Two Gareths face off


GKV: Theatre just a load of posh crap. 
GN: Theatre Critics are just wannabe artists who don’t have the balls to do it themselves.

Some of it is, sure, but the stuff I see is mostly thrilling and brilliant and great. Theatre questions, entertains and moves you in ways other forms of media can’t. The days of silly wigs and using binoculars from the posh box are decreasing dramatically, especially in Scotland, where I think we have some of the most exciting and interesting artists making work - work that can be enjoyed by posh folk and mere plebs alike!

GKV:  Stirling is a rubbish place to perform. 
GN: GTFO!

Stirling is a brilliant place to perform, make and develop work.  It has a large and fantastically diverse audience including a great university crowd. In the macrobert art centre, it has a champion of exciting and innovative work, with a support structure that allows artists to take risks and develop their own interests and passions. Plus the facilities are fantastic, the fresh air is great and the chippy in Bridge of Allan serves a cracking battered cod.


GKV: Classical music sucks. 
GN: U suck!

GKV: You are giving bullies a chance to justify themselves. 
There’s much more to trolling than just being horrible. There’s activism trolling (trolls with a specific political or ideological agenda), white knight trolling (trolls who claim they are on a crusade for good) and cannibal trolling (trolls who target other trolls) to name but a few. Each form of troll has a wide array of reasons for doing what they do and an infinite number of tactics to achieve their aim. Do Not Feed The Trolls examines many forms of Trolling both in the online world and in ‘real-life’. It doesn’t try to say trolling is ‘good’ or bad’ but rather examines the psychology behind it. Why do humans have an innate ability to take pleasure in others misery? How does online anonymity change the lengths we’ll go to do this? And how do we deal with this when the online world is becoming increasingly ever-present?

One Troll I came across said he ‘teaches people to wear a helmet by battering them over the head with a baseball bat’. It’s not my preferred option of teaching but there’s something in it.

GKV: Your cast has no talent. 
GN: My cast comprises of two Royal Conservatoire of Scotland students currently in their fourth year of the Contemporary Performance Practice course and four former macrobert youth theatre members who have just entered their first year of university.

They are some of the most diligent, provocative and exciting theatre makers I have ever worked with. I’ve pushed them to take artistic risks in the show and they’ve pushed me back twice as hard. They have bags of talent, an abundance of talent, So much talent they could setup a talent shop!

Well, in any case I’m fond of them. And after seeing Do Not Feed The Trolls I think you will like them too.


GKV: The audience will be bored. 
GN: We’ve had many reactions to Do Not Feed The Trolls and ‘boring’ has never been one. Far from it. 

It’s a darkly humorous show that knots people up emotionally and leaves them reeling over what just happened. Reactions to the work have always been visceral and I hope that continues. Half of the fun is experiencing how your fellow audience members react to the material. Audiences tend to be quite vocal during the performance and that mentality feeds itself, increasing the laughs, the oo’s and the ah’s more. The audience becomes an integral part of the piece and I think that’s an exciting thing to experience.


GKV: Stewart Lee's not funny 
GN: Neither is your mum.

Gareth K Vile (writer) 
Gareth Nicholls (Director)

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