In an immersive theatrical odyssey, exploring the spaces within the Arts Centre Melbourne, Fox and collaborators will be introducing Melbourne to a new religion, and it might just be the faith we've been looking for in these troubled times of North Korean nukes and divisive plebishites: Discordianism. As Fox explains, its principles are pure anarchy. "Chaos is the one thing you can truly rely on. Our constant attempts to create order, which humans naturally do in all sorts of ways — ordering our emotions, trying to pigeon-hole people, trying to categorise everything — inevitably creates fear of losing control. That need for order is the root of stress, oppression, anxiety, and basically everything that's screwed up about our society," Fox says. "So, we're looking at a loss of control as a hopeful idea. Realising that chaos is the only thing that will always reign is actually deeply relaxing, if you really think about it."
While this foray into the spiritual began as a rebellious creative gambit, as the Discordia has developed, Fox and co have made believers out of themselves. "It started out as us kind of wanting to poke holes in the idea of organised religion and the politics behind it, to see how far we could run with that. But while we've been making the piece, we've started to actually believe in Discordianism. That's when things started to get really interesting," Fox admits. "I was like, 'Wow! This is how it starts.' Actually, the process of making a piece of theatre shares a lot in common with starting a religion. You begin with a story, and that becomes a mythology that you start to look for in everything you're doing. And then you start to find those principles appearing in the world around you. The next thing you know, you're recruiting — and it genuinely has happened that way for us. We really have come to believe in this concept that order is actually a really negative framework."
Immersive performance is nothing new, in fact it's so prevalent overseas that in cultural hubs like London and New York, immersive productions have almost become something of a contemporary theatre cliche. However, Discordia is taking the concept to another plain of existence entirely. The performance itself will be framed as a roaming documentary, revealing the bizarre practices of the rose-puce spandex-clad Discordiants — narrated by the incomparable Lee Lin Chin. The audience will be encouraged to engage with unfamiliar customs as they discover Discordianism's rituals, including a pink-food-only diet, and its most sacred space, the Womb Room. Even after the performance concludes, Fox and her fellow faithful will be attempting to have Discordianism recognised as an official, legally binding religion in Australia (for tax purposes, of course).
The piece, while radical in its scope and ambition, was hand-picked from 99 submissions for the inaugural Take Over! Scheme; a new initiative for artists to make site-specific work at the Arts Centre Melbourne for the 2017 Fringe Festival. However, it seems that the Arts Centre may have gotten more than they bargained for when they commissioned Fox and her team. Creating a work about chaos in a building as rigorously marshalled as the ACM has been a challenge for both the artsists and the venue's management alike. But also, in true Discordian spirit, oddly formative too, Fox reveals: "It's been interesting trying to create any genuine level of chaos in a place that is ultimately pretty risk-averse. Every inch of the building is under surveillance, and we kept getting in trouble. We were rehearsing and some security came and shut us down because we tried to blow up a giant inflatable vagina in the middle of the foyer without really telling anyone or asking for permission. We've had to work really hard to bring some genuine chaos into that space."
The Arts Centre Melbourne presents Discordia, 27 Sep — 1 Oct, part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival
