文化符號與劇場符號 ──鄧氏古蹟劇場中的道德與方法 Cultural and Theatrical Signs: the Ethical and Methodological Issues in Tang's Heritage Theatre

Abstract

本計畫乃香港教育劇場論壇的新嘗試,藉著在兩個鄧氏宗祠演出香 港著名的鄧氏原居民的故事,向中、小學生帶出歷史與古蹟的關 係,並進一步點出保育歷史建築物的意義與困難。研究員恰好亦是 主辦機構的幹事及該計畫的顧問,對研究議題可提供不同角度的思 考。計畫實施的前半段尚算順利,至演出前夕的最後綵排,事情發 生了一段插曲──有鄧氏居民不滿演出的內容;反思整個應用劇場 的設計,作者探討了劇場符號與道德方法之間的微妙關係。

關鍵詞:符號、介入、應用劇場、博物館劇場、古蹟劇場 

This Heritage Theatre programme was a new venture by the Hong Kong Drama/Theatre and Education Forum. They introduced to primary and secondary schools the story of Hong Kong’s famous local clan, the Tang’s, through an interactive performance done in two of Tang’s ancestral halls. The aim of the project was to discuss the relationship between history and heritage buildings, and the meanings and difficulties in preserving these buildings. As I happened to be a consultant of the project, I adopted a participant-researcher role in this study. The beginning of the project experienced good progress, until on the very day of final rehearsal with a group of secondary students in the audience, some unsettling things happened which nearly forced the performance to come to a halt at the middle—a clan member did not think the story was presented in an appropriate way! The incident let us re-think about the function of heritage theatre as applied theatre, and the methodological element we need to take into consideration for the best facilitation of such function to be performed.

Keywords: Semiotics; Intervention; Applied Theatre; Museum Theatre; Heritage Theatre