شکل‌دهی روایت اجراییِ فناورانه در «هفت نهر رودخانه اوتا» و «کوریولان» اثر رابرت لپاژ بر مبنای نظریه استیو دیکسون

Introduction: Based on direct interaction with the audience, theatre is a lively art that is constantly affected by technologies of its time. But today technology has made a distinction in theatre due to its key role in the form and content of narration. Not just confined to increasing visual appeal or facilitating stage changes, today technology acts as a structural narrative factor which directly interferes in time, atmosphere, body and even the relation between the audience and the performance.
Among contemporary directors, Canada’s Robert Lepage is a prominent figure who ties technology and narration in theatre. His works, including Les Sept Branches de la Rivière Ota (The Seven Streams of the River Ota) (1994-1996) and Coriolanus (an interpretation of Coriolanus by William Shakespeare), are among the leading examples in which image, sound, light, dynamic space and the actor’s body intertwine in a complicated network of story and sense.  The core issue of this study is how and to what extent technology transforms into a narrative creator and what consequences this transformation has for the narration structure, the spectator’s experience and the director’s role.
The hypothesis of the research is that in Lepage’s works, technology works not only as a supplementary or decorative instrument but as an independent narrative factor which enables the re-definition of fundamental elements of narration including time, space, focalization, character and audience agency. In other words, in these works technology makes its way through the periphery to the center of the narrative and becomes the second and occasionally the main narrator of the story.
Research Background: Many studies have been done regarding the relation between the technology and contemporary theatre. Timon Beyes and his scholars in their book named “Performing the Digital: Performance Studies and Performances in Digital Cultures (2017)” indicate that using technology in contemporary performances needs reconfiguration of the presence, space, writing and temporality.
Aleksandar Dunđerović, in his book “The Theatricality of Robert Lepage (2007)” says the technologies used in Lepage’s works reach a level of conducting level which forms not only the space but the narrative logic. He believes the technology works not only as an instrument but as a co-actor who logically helps the incident and contributes to the audience’s perception of time, space and the character. Dr. Izabella Pluta in Anderson Project (2005) elucidates the key concept of ‘mediaphoric body’_ a body that interacts with and is integrated into digital media, becoming part of the stage's media system. James Reynolds (2019) describes Lepage’s performances as “living narrative machines.”
Research Methodology: This study adopts a qualitative approach and employs a case study methodology. The theoretical framework of this study is grounded in digital performance studies, with particular emphasis on Steve Dixon's work. In Digital Performance (2007), Dixon proposes six key dimensions for the analysis of digital performance: presence, body, space, time, interaction, and identity transformation. Data collection has been done through three supplementary ways: 1) Library studies, including the analysis of specialized books, theses and dissertations, and published interviews with Lepage; 2) Observation and visual analysis of the performances using the captured videos from the Ex Machina company and existing short parts on digital platforms; 3) Analysis of performative documents, criticisms, and specialized reports regarding the performances.
Research Findings: Research findings show that in Lepage’s works, the technology goes beyond instrumental and decorative function and transforms into a structural element in redefining the fundamental factors of narration. Overall, the findings can be summarized as follows: a) Redefinition of narrative time: Using video projection and moving staging in “The Seven Streams of the River Ota,” Lepage produces a multi-time structure that makes the association and displacement among different historical eras possible. According to Dikson, this method is an example of “simultaneous performance,” which is possible through digital technology. b) Expansion of narrative space: In Lepage’s works the space becomes an active element in narration, and by using technology and dynamic staging, it constantly varies and creates new layers of meaning and narrative worlds. c) Transformation of physical body (mediaphoric body): In Lepage’s works, the actor’s body transforms into a “mediaphoric body” in interaction with digital technology—the body that violates the border between reality and the image and becomes a medium to produce meaning. d) Alternation of the audience role: In Lepage’s works, the audience has to recover the meaning from among the audio, visual, and spatial layers. Dikson calls this situation the “conceptual participation” and believes that in digital performance, the audience is not a mere meaning consumer but a meaning generator himself. e) Generation of meaning and memory through media images: Referring to “digital documentary performance,” Dikson says that archive images and media re-enactments of the past change the memory from an internal and spiritual matter to an external and collective one.
Results: According to this study, Robert Lepage exhibits a new model for contemporary theatre with transforming the technology to a narrative language_the model converting the technology to a narrative creator factor with redefining the time, the space, the body, the audience and the memory. Future studies can focus on comparative studies, the role of artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality technologies, and audience experience in digital theatre.