In this video Ant Hampton, one of the creators of The Quiet Volume, shares his insights and observations about the show and tells us how he thinks this production at the Beineke Rare Book & Manuscript Library Reading Room will be a truly unique experience.
The Quiet Volume is an intimate theatrical experience about books, reading, and the communal experience of the library. Two participants sit side-by-side at tables and don headphones. Taking cues from words both written and whispered in their ears, they find themselves burrowing an unlikely path through a pile of books.
The play, written by Ant Hampton and Tim Etchells, exploits the particular tension common to any library worldwide: a combination of silence and concentration within which different peoples' experiences of reading unfold.
Celebrating the Beinecke The Quiet Volume takes place in the Reading Room of Yale’s spectacular Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, a 50-year-old New Haven institution dedicated to the preservation of rare books and manuscripts for research and discovery. Events taking place as part of the Beinecke's anniversary year also include walking tours, talks, and more.
Credits Voices (English version): Ant Hampton, Seth Etchells, Jenny Naden
Artistic production: Katja Timmerberg
Binaural recordings: TiTo Toblerone
Commissioned and produced by Ciudades Paralelas, a festival of portable theatre curated by Stefan Kaegi and Lola Arias, in coproduction with Vooruit Arts Centre, Belgium
Performances June 18-28, 2013