{"id":389,"date":"2025-05-08T19:44:03","date_gmt":"2025-05-08T19:44:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/31\/?p=389"},"modified":"2025-06-26T19:29:47","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T19:29:47","slug":"quels-roles-pour-le-spectateur-a-lere-numerique","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/31\/quels-roles-pour-le-spectateur-a-lere-numerique\/","title":{"rendered":"Quels r\u00f4les pour le spectateur \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e8re num\u00e9rique?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Simon Hagemann and Izabella Pluta<\/strong>
Lausanne, Switzerland: Presses polytechniques et universitaires romandes. 211 pp.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reviewed by Lou Gargouri<\/strong>*<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

First a word about the two authors. Simon Hagemann is an Associate Professor of Communication at the Universit\u00e9 de Lorraine. His work focuses on the intersections of theatre, video games, history, and media innovation. Izabella Pluta, a theatre critic and translator, is an independent researcher affiliated with the Centre d\u2019\u00e9tudes th\u00e9\u00e2trales at the Universit\u00e9 de Lausanne. She co-edits Critiques<\/em>, a journal dedicated to digital performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In their book Quels r\u00f4les pour le spectateur \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e8re num\u00e9rique ?<\/em>, Hagemann and Pluta offer in French a methodical exploration of the evolving relationship between audiences and live performance in the digital age.[1]<\/sup><\/a> This volume joins a growing corpus of work focused on technology and performance, extending reflections found in foundational works like Steve Dixon\u2019s Digital Performance<\/em> (2007) and Quebec professor Josette F\u00e9ral\u2019s more recent La vid\u00e9o en sc\u00e8ne<\/em> (2022).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Structured in nine chapters, their study ranges from terminological clarification to speculative futures involving artificial intelligence. The framework enables the authors to develop an in-depth analysis of emerging spectatorial postures shaped by digital technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their first chapter \u2013 \u201cA Critical Genealogy of the Spectator and Its Metamorphoses\u201d — undertakes an inquiry into how audiences are labeled and understood. Drawing from the work of Christian Ruby and Patrice Pavis, the authors unpack the implications of terms such as \u201cspectator,\u201d \u201cpublic,\u201d \u201caudience,\u201d \u201cparticipant,\u201d \u201cspect-actor\u201d (Boal), and \u201cexperimenter.\u201d As they emphasize, \u201cthe important thing is not the word used, but what its use implies\u201d (30). This lexicon proves crucial for interpreting the shifting modes of theatrical reception.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also trace the evolution of the stage-audience dynamic, from ancient civic theatre and medieval liturgical drama, to the bourgeois theatre\u2019s disciplinarian gaze (Bennett), and the radical reengagement of the historical avant-gardes (Dadaism, Futurism, Constructivism). These genealogies underline that today\u2019s concerns with audience engagement are rooted in long-standing debates around the role of the public in performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the chapter called \u201cThe Digital Turn and Sensory Implications\u201dthey contextualize the rise of a \u201cdigital society\u201d and its implications for theatre. Post-humanism and trans-humanism are introduced as conceptual backdrops for the evolving status of the spectator, with reference to Rosi Braidotti, N. Katherine Hayles, and Donna Haraway. These frameworks help articulate how digital technologies challenge human exceptionalism and reshape performance ontology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the book\u2019s most original contributions appears in a chapter called \u201cAu royaume des sens,\u201d which investigates how digital devices engage the five senses. Referencing Marshall McLuhan\u2019s theory of \u201ctechnological extensions of man\u201d and Paul Virilio\u2019s notion of \u201cvisionics\u201d , the authors analyze how technological performance reconfigures perception. Examples from CREW (Belgium), \u00c9ric Joris\u2019s VR projects, and INVIVO\u2019s sound installations illustrate what they call a \u201crenewal of perception\u201d (p. 97), extending well beyond traditional audio-visual registers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The heart of the book presents a compelling typology of three emerging figures:<\/p>\n\n\n\n