Content
Cube, Project Arts Centre, Dublin
★★★★★
Alan logs on to his workstation. A message flashes up on his screen: “Thank You for Making the Internet Safer”.
Hate speech. Delete. A war victim’s severed hand. Delete. Revenge porn. Delete. An exploding dog. Delete. Just another average day at the office.
Have you ever spared a thought for the people tasked with scrubbing social media of its churning pool of toxic waste? Ross Dungan’s play Content explores the disturbing world of content moderation. Alan (Joshua McEneaney), or Android Alan as his colleagues like to call him, has worked at this job for five years. Viewing horrifying images is the norm for him and his fellow content mods.
Then, one day, something not so normal happens, something that turns the world of Alan’s sharp-witted coworker Alannah upside-down. Alannah (Genevieve Hulme-Beaman) and Alan, an unlikely pair despite their similar names, find themselves on a suspense-filled quest for answers.
Murmur: The young audience gasp and laugh, mesmerised by this playful, inventive performance
Content: Hate speech, revenge porn and an exploding dog – A gripping portrayal of the human cost of sanitising social media
Global Desires: Flashes of brilliance, but this performance art leaves a sense of disruption and discomfort
The Jesus Trilogy: Beautifully textured adaptation captures all the sadness and mystery of JM Coetzee’s novels
Wading through the darkest corners of social media is not for the faint of heart. Luckily, Alan always has Jean on hand to ground him when things get overwhelming. Together, through art, they can imagine a more forgiving world. It’s probably worth mentioning that Jean is a kangaroo.
Directed by Sara Joyce, this 15th Oak production blends live illustration and multimedia sequences with the theatrical to create a darkly comic piece. Alongside the novel incorporation of real-time doodles by Sarah Moloney, Content’s innovative use of space, sound and lighting makes for a uniquely immersive experience. This performance feels raw and authentic in a way that visibly grips its audience from start to finish.
Hilarious while also evoking a stifling sense of unease, the play boldly tackles some of the most pressing concerns of the internet age as Dungan interrogates the cost to its devoted cleaners of sanitising social media. Alan grapples with his desire to “add value”, something he feels he can only do through his work; Alannah is determined to clear her conscience. Both characters just want to feel content.
With the clever double entendre of its title, the play essentially delves into the idea that what we see on our screens increasingly determines whether we feel satisfied with our lives. Food for thought.
Continues at Project Arts Centre, as part of Dublin Theatre Festival, until Saturday, October 19th
