In early 2011, monochrom will make one of humanity’s old dreams come true: an improv reality sitcom for theater stages portraying the first year of operation of the ISS (International Space Station).
The show will depict day-to-day working life in outer space. What is it like to live and work under the special conditions (and impairments) of a space station, to come to terms with weightlessness and the dictatorship of the functional? What is one to do, when any little thing that needs to get done costs 150,000 dollars? And all the while the national debt is continually setting new record highs. How, under such conditions, can you deal with having banal little everyday problems, and with (not) solving them?
In space no one can hear you complain about your job.
We are still looking for actors! Sign up for our casting in Vienna on 14 January 2011.
Please send your email to iss AT monochrom.at
By making prior arrangements, an audition could possibly be scheduled for 15 January as well.
We are looking for
– two male actors, English native speakers (for the roles of the two “Americans”)
– a male actor, Russian native speaker (for the role of the “Russian”)
– a female actor, French native speaker (for the role of the “French Canadian”)Requirements: good English and German skills, experience with improv theater, you can work in Vienna
The Project:
Why space flight?
Life and work on the ISS, the largest international space station ever, has almost nothing to do with the lifestyle of adventure and exploration portrayed on TV shows like Star Trek. The station’s crew works under the difficult conditions of outer space, where existence is governed by adapting to the limitations imposed by weightlessness, cramped quarters and complex record keeping. Earthly comfort and the things we take for granted in everyday life can only be provided for through makeshift simulation.
Why sitcom?
The dramatic conventions of the sitcom correspond to the everyday life of people who spend an extended period of time on a space station. The latter is an unending sequence of detailed and strictly regulated tasks, leaving little room for anything unexpected. The adventure faced by the ISS crew is not to confront any fantastic events arising from the unknown depths beyond the airlock, but to come to terms with the trials of close confinement as a group while maintaining the communicative status quo between crew members.
In space no one can hear you complain about your job.