We seek to understand the present moment, we are curious about the effects of simultaneous actions taking place—acting on separate bodies in separate locations. This workshop explores the potential of carefully composed performance directives for use as creative mechanisms, we cut into the present to let the future leak in.

This workshop was presented in advance of our conference presentation: Double translations: telling another way to tell. The workshop took place over three days and culminated with voluntary participation in our conference presentation. The first and third days were studio-based with activities focused on writing and physical material generation. On the second day of the workshop we meet twice as a group and once synchronised in time but in separate locations; we took an hour-long silent walk at dawn and the same walk again at dusk, in addition on that day participants observed and measured the passing of time for an hour at solar noon. This workshop involved both movement of the body and spoken word, we made use of our visual and aural capacities with a focus on attentiveness, and worked to sense time and place as tools in the service of composition.

Of the questions posed by the conference curators we addressed the following: How does the notion of encounter (in the sense of a shared time between people) help us address issues of spectatorship, individuality, alterity and collaboration, dialogue and exchange in performance and performance studies in the current moment?