The Dramaturgy of the Underwhelming: an Affective Experience of Crip Time

Abstract

The emergence of relaxed performances demonstrates an initiative towards inclusiv-ity in theatre. Relaxed performances, characterised by adapted stimuli levels and relaxed theatre conventions, challenge the traditional notion of spectatorship in Western theatre. While existing research focuses on advocating to accommodate neurodiverse audiences, the dramaturgical implications of these adaptations are still unaccounted for. Here, I explore how the dramaturgy of the underwhelming can produce an experi-ence of crip time in the spectatorship of relaxed performances. Drawing on theories of crip time and affect theory, I propose the dramaturgy of the underwhelming as a way of under-standing the affective experience of time in relaxed performances. Using two case studies— Permit, oh Permit my Soul to Rebel by Side-Show and Via Injabulo by Via Katlehong Dance Company—the essay employs dramaturgical analysis to explore spectatorship and situated-ness on the different ways of making relaxed performances. The study reveals how relaxed performances uses repetition to structure its specta-torship, hence offering a unique temporal experience that challenges linear and teleological temporalities and embraces multiple affective experiences of time. Besides, the situatedness of relaxed performances in disability practices provides the necessary space and context for this specific theatrical experience to unravel. By looking at the different vectors proposed by dramaturgical analysis, it is possible to observe that by trying to adapt to different crip times through organising spectatorship in a given way – the dramaturgy of the underwhelm-ing – relaxed performances can give the space for the different affects and its ambiguities to be manifested in performance. Ultimately, this research aims to validate relaxed perfor-mances as legitimate theatrical experiences and contribute to a nuanced understanding of spectatorship in inclusive theatre spaces.