The history of collectif büs123
The collectif büs123, a multigenerational, multi-lingual and multimedia artist collective, was formed in Montreal in 1991 to create the multidisciplinary piece BUS 123. The piece was presented a year later as part of the fringe Festival of Independant Dance Artists (fFIDA) in Toronto (Canada). Twenty years later, many of the original performers joined forces once again to delve back into the original ideas and create a new piece working from new collaborative improvisations, adressing the incredible technological and societal changes due to the Internet.
The result of that research was Babelle et Barbarie (B+B), a full multimedia theatrical piece presented at the Winchester St. Theatre in Toronto in the fall of 2015. The collective followed it up with the third phase of this project. We broke up the full theatrical piece into a series of interactive interior and exterior site-specific performances that engage and interact with the community. The series draws from theatre and multimedia to explore the relationship between language, culture and communication.
It’s titled Babel-o-drome (BBL), a mad race towards a world emptied of meaning. It was presented in Wychwood Barns Park in Toronto in June and July 2018, as part of the Phénomena festival in October 2018 in Montréal and in the form of excerpts during Culture Days 2018. During the pandemic health and safety measures, the collective turned to online shows. Babel-o-drome NUGEN 1 and 2 were born: videos for the digital screens with a filmic aesthetic. They were broadcast in Toronto at the virtual Fringe 2020, as well as at the Journées de la Culture 2020 and at the Videoformes festival 2021 (France).
The collective is presenting its new piece POST-HUMANUM, in its online version. It's a lo-fi take on a hi-tech world. A raucous funhouse where humans, robotics and artificial intelligence merge in performance anarchy.
The members of the collective, based in Ontario and Quebec, form an eclectic group of artists with professional careers in their respective fields of theatre, video, music, dance and song. They also pursue their own multidisciplinary artistic research. The look of Babelle et Barbarie (B+B), Babel-o-drome (BBL) and POST-HUMANUM is the reflection of their collaboration within the collective.
Research and Development
Who are we when faced with this hyper-media coverage of the world and ourselves? Are we the sum of definitions created by others? How do we find ourselves in this infernal cacophony of media? These are some of the fundamental issues the collectif büs123 investigated when it began Babelle et Barbarie in 2012 and Babel-o-drome in 2017. To see the documentation of our research and production workshops, click on the links below:
Babel-o-drome: workshop excerpts:
Workshop presentation in preparation for the performance: Babel-o-drome. The participants are members of the collectif BUS 1.2.3. in collaboration with Christine Duncan and the Element choir. 2016 ©collectifbus123 ©moveprod inc.
video documentation:
Below are video excerpts of rehearsals of selected scenes from the multidisciplinary and multilingual creation Babelle et Barbarie by collectif bus123. The first shows were presented at the Winchester St. theatre in Toronto from September 2-5, 2015. Team members are listed in the credits at the beginning of the videos.
projected videos:
Below are a few of the videos which are projected during the piece.
BUS 123 original (1992):
The multimedia theatrical and musical show takes a provocative and ironic look at modern life. The play is an allegory, a current myth in which the specter of a mythological goddess appears in a media nightmare, whose master is a diabolical crook. Mythological figures, as well as commercial and psychological stereotypes, face each other off in a series of virtual realities.
video stills and rehearsal photos:
The utilisation of video refers to its use as media’s main tool: it frames the action, directs the eyes and ears while ignoring what’s outside its frame. It transforms reality by manipulating the image, text and message. It’s used to change the perception of viewers and Internet users, to form their opinions and to define them. It’s thus one of the main means with which we criticize our ultra mediatisation and loss of identity in the face of overwhelming media overload. Below are several images taken from video excerpts and rehearsals.
