Today our spotlight falls on Mark Johnson. Mark is the Director of Strings Attached, a theatre company based in Zürich, Switzerland that performs original shows in English and German with mainly Swiss themes and original music.
Mark is performing “Confessions of a Cultural Spy” at the Adelaide Fringe this year at The Garage International venue. He has performed many times with The Garage International both in Edinburgh, (Scotland) and Avignon (France).
Mark’s show has a bizarre surrealistic twist to it in that it is not easy for many to appreciate, but if you like to explore the fascinating nuances between European and American culture then this is a must see show. “A legal alternative to LSD” said one of the Edinburgh newspapers. With such a fascinating quote, we had to learn more……
1. What inspired you to become a writer, performer and artist?
I have been involved in the arts since I was in the 6th Grade and was introduced to “Modern Art” by an exceptional teacher at a one-room school in Torino, Italy. I have been working in one Art form or another (painting, writing, photography, and performance) ever since. “Confessions of a Cultural Spy” is the culmination of my work in all of these disciplines.
2. What is your show about and what should the public expect from your show?
Among other things I am trying to point out the immense difficulties involved in American and European attempts at mutual understanding. Beyond this, however, I want to give the public a sense of the mystery and magic that I continually find wherever I go in Europe.
3. What is your favorite festival or fringe and why?
I have performed several times at both the Edinburgh Fringe and the Avignon Off, and I find that each of these festivals has its own appeal. On the one hand, Edinburgh is crazier, with a lot of sleep deprivation, anxiety, and waiting for reviews that you for some reason believe will either make or break your show. Avignon, on the other hand, is more relaxed - it has to be because of the heat! - and intellectual. You get the feeling that the audiences there are more serious than in Edinburgh and appreciate your work more.
4. What’s your best advice for aspiring writers, artists and performers on the festival/fringe circuit?
All need to remember that making money is not the goal of performing at Fringe Festivals. Festivals have the advantage of bringing together a large number of people seriously interested in the theatre. It is the job of performers to find an appreciative audience for their work - even if it’s only one guy on a slow Tuesday afternoon who stays after the show to tell you how much your piece moved him. I also believe that Fringe performers should always remain true to the original vision of their company and not chase positive reviews or large audiences. After all, the beauty of Fringe events is that the public is exposed to work not available in the official Festival program.
5. What is your funniest and also, your worst experience performing or attending a festival/fringe?
My funniest experience was in Edinburgh one year when a suitcase full of props, including rubber chickens, did not arrive with us at the airport. We were, of course, forced to put on the show without these props. About halfway through the first performance, however, the suitcase was delivered to the venue. The owner, aware of our problem, took out the rubber chickens and tossed them onto the stage, just in time for their big scene. The audience, of course, assumed all of this was part of the show.
On another occasion, a wooden chair that I was supposed to collapse into disintegrated unexpectedly under my weight. The audience also assumed that this bit was part of the show.
The worst experience was when a bag containing some electric candles that were crucial for our performance “disappeared” two days before the end of the Edinburgh Fringe. We didn’t discover that they were missing until three hours before show time. I still remember how a friend of one of the cast members frantically searched the shops of the city for appropriate candles and holders while I worked to talk the venue staff into allowing us to use real candles on stage. Everything worked out in the end, but we never found the missing electric candles.
6. As you travel, performing at different festivals/fringes, what is your favorite place to vacation and chill out and why?
I always return to the lesser known valleys of Ticino, the Italian part of Switzerland. There it’s still possible to hike through the mountains and come upon unexpected Medieval ruins and not see another person for hours at a time.
7. Who is the person you most admire and why?
I admire Johann Caspar Lavater very much. He is a prominent character in “Confessions…” and was an 18th Century Swiss clergyman and philosopher. His tenacious attempt, in the face of severe criticism from his colleagues, to find the miraculous in the rational world of the Enlightenment endears him to me.
8. What is the best tip you have ever been given?
That an artist should never change his work just for the sake of audience/critical approval.
9. What is the best book you have read and why do you like it?
I have read many wonderful books so I’ll have to answer this question by naming the book I most often come back to, and that is “Pontormo’s Diary” (“Il Libro Mio”) by the 16th Century Italian painter Iacopo da Pontormo. This book interests me because of the simple way it joins the work of an artist with the day-to-day activities and concerns of his life. This short book is quoted several times in “Confessions of a Cultural Spy”.
10. If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
I would outlaw capital punishment.
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Thank you Mark for a very informative interview. We wish you much success in Adelaide. Having lived in the States for 6 years and now living in Europe, your show definitely sparks my interest.
For more information about Mark Johnson, check out The Garage International’s website.
