Meriel Price

This week we celebrated the world premiere and the first of 30 performances of staring at the bin, 27 music theatre miniatures for public spaces I wrote for the Munich Biennale International Festival for Music Theatre. On the 28th May the festival begins and my exhibition accompanying the project can be found in the six meter high cube situated in front of the Muffathalle in Munich. Hope to see you there.

Staring at the bin is where the public, music and theatre directly meet, unannounced and unexpected. A collection of minuscule performances in public spaces, events so tiny they appear to be coincidences or strange chance occurrences.

Musical and theatrical events are seamlessly fused to life in urban spaces, distilled to their essence; the rest, the beat, repetition or variation. Day to day life is framed and focussed as it provides the material for intimate interactions.

Meeting eye to eye without an “art” context allows a new relationship, a direct response as all labels are removed, leaving space for ones own meaning. Disturbances in the rhythm of the day force a pause for thought, an opportunity to reinterpret the everyday routines of urban life.

Something for nothing and unexplained, the events are unexpected, heightening awareness, stimulating a more immediate connection to surrounding people, places and occurrences.

In advance of and during the entire festival these mini events are scattered around Munich capturing coincidental audiences. These are documented and throughout the festival an exhibition space will evolve and develop, a living protocol documenting an ongoing experience.