Eaten By Men – Alexandria, Egypt/Nantes, France/Stockholm, Sweden

All animals are equal. But some animals are more equal than others. Opening on January 22, 2010 at Theatre 1, Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts Reich-Szyber and Malmestad-Westerlund present, in collaboration with the Mime Programme at the Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts, the University College of Film, Radio, Television and Theatre, the Royal College of Music in Stockholm and the Royal University College of Fine Arts, a revival of our 1980s epos "Eaten by men".

Reich-Szyber and Malmestad-Westerlund present, in collaboration with the Mime Programme at the Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts, the University College of Film, Radio, Television and Theatre, the Royal College of Music in Stockholm and the Royal University College of Fine Arts, a revival of our 1980s epos “Eaten by men”.

Created in 1985 for different constellations of artists and for such varied theatre venues as the not yet reconstructed Torpedverkstaden (today Moderna dansteatern and Teater Galeasen), the BarBar Gallery and the Charlottenborg Museum in Copenhagen, “Eaten by men” weaves together a post-punk New Wave aesthetic with such themes as repressed sexuality, subtle group violence against a given individual and the breakthrough of lecherous ecstasy.

Today, at the close of 2009, the piece has been entirely revamped and is being staged together with a new generation of contemporary artists of stage, song and the fine arts. All the performers – including those responsible for lighting, sound and costume design – are creators in their twenties and thirties, just as we were 24 years ago.

The scenery consists, as before, of 120 metres of hemp rope, 600 kilos of grain and the intricate grid that demarcates and confines the actors during the performance, created in real time by Martin Christensen from the Royal University College of Fine Arts.

“The world around us is extraordinarily well-endowed with restrictions. We are so used to them that we take most of them for granted and often are not even aware of their existence. To find out what the world would be like without its usual restrictions we are forced to turn to fairy tales or slapstick comedy films, and even those reveal no more than a fraction of the restrictions.”

W Ross Ashby: An Introduction to Cybernetics (1956)

“First they ignore you, then they make fun of you, then they attack you, then you win!”

Mahatma Gandhi

“Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence. In other words, it is war minus the shooting.”

George Orwell

The only interesting answers are those which destroy the questions.”

Susan Sontag

Group Phases

All groups go through different phases as the individuals in the group change, as relationships shift and as the group as a whole lives through diverse experiences. Different groups develop at different speeds and in different ways. Some may skip over a phase or two or revert to an earlier phase. In general, however, the phases that most groups go through can be described as follows:

1. Tentative

Group members are trying to get to know each other and few initiatives are taken. Each is fumbling to get a grasp of what kind of group they are in and to find their proper role. One must be able to give of oneself and to compromise in order to encounter and learn to know each other.

2. Engagement, possibly a new casting of roles

Members begin to find their feet. They are more relaxed with each other and their commitment deepens. When members know each other better individual roles in the group can come to be altered.

3. Harmony

The group is welded into a whole and everyone is happy and in harmony. Unwritten rules and secret norms begin to be established.

4. Conflict

After working together for a time irritation with each other sets in. Members’ negative sides begin to emerge and the group starts feeling insecure or dissatisfied. If the members can handle the insecurity the chances of development are good.

5. Maturity

Conflicts and sources of irritation are worked through in the group and mutual solutions found. Differences can now be accepted in a new way.

6. Completion/Continuation

The circle closes. A group-process cycle has ended. The group can now choose to terminate itself, which may involve both grief and release. The choice to continue leads the group into another cycle of group phases.

Excerpt from the Finland-Swedish Pupils’ Association Resource Bank for Pupil Bodies and School Activists.

The life of the group can be divided into three phases (dimensions):

1. Belonging (the belonging phase), which describes relations in the immature group. Here the individuals’ focus is on questions of belonging or not belonging to the group. Members behave politely and try to orient themselves among the other group members to see whether she/he can accept the others and be accepted by them. The need of the individual is to feel important enough to belong to the group.

2. Control (the control/role-seeking phase), which describes relations in the group when the individuals’ focus is on questions of the individual’s position in the group. Members often act in a confrontational or custodial manner towards other group members in order to measure their own and others’ position in the group. The need of the individual is to feel competent enough and to have sufficient authority to influence the group.

3.Openness (the openness phase), which describes relations in the mature group when the individuals’ focus is on questions of relations to other group members in terms of “how close to or far away from others do I want to be?” Members behave openly towards each other and share their thoughts and feelings. The need of the individual is to feel liked enough by others. It is first in this phase that the working group has achieved full effect for the work it is set to do.

The group model builds on the basic model which says that all human needs and behaviour can be described in the dimensions Belonging, Control and Openness.

Will Schutz: Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation