TU Delft and Operadagen Rotterdam combined forces again this year to produce the third edition of the city opera Parsifal in which The Grand Opera and The Game were performed together for the first time.
Delen
The transmedia project is a modern-day retelling of Richard Wagner’s (1813-1883) Parsifal in which the protagonist, Parsifal, is a hero-fool who saves the mortally wounded king by finding the Holy Spear. In artistic lead and director Arlon Luijten’s vision, however, there is rarely a single hero in today’s world. Instead there are many, including hidden heroes, in the modern urban setting. Prompting these citizen heroes to action is the societal challenge that Parsifal The Grand Opera and The Game explores.
This year’s performance, held at various locations in the heart of Rotterdam from May 20 – 29, combined the opera and ‘real-life gaming’ elements and features as a testing ground of sorts for ongoing research in the Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management. Dr. Rens Kortmann, TU Delft Assistant Professor and expert advisor on the experiential game design and social innovation element of Parsifal described the scientific component of the project as a contribution to research into the conditions under which “game playing can leverage the mechanisms of social innovation processes to tackle the Grand Challenges in our society.”
As a multi-disciplinary research project, this blend of performing arts and simulation games resulted in a theatrical experience where the audience is invited to become Parsifal. In the absence of the ‘real’ Parsifal, who fails to appear in Act I, the audience faces the quest of finding the Holy Spear to ‘heal the wounded king’ as a metaphor for finding solutions to today’s societal challenges. The theatrical elements entailed a full-fledged opera performed in three acts. The audience, led by the song of sirens and a percussion band on their quest for the Holy Spear, traversed the busy streets of Rotterdam to reach the various performance locations.
Insights into the game’s potential to spark constructive thoughts and discussions amongst players and to prompt social innovation will be gathered from game participants. Additionally, Kortmann is studying the 2016 edition of Parsifal for ways that simulation games can be made more engaging for participants, without reductions in time efficiency and financial effectiveness. An adapted version of The Game will be conducted during the introduction week for TPM first year students in September 2016.
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