Show abstract
Nobody Speaks is a multimedia theatrical performance piece written by Verbobala Spoken Video and presented in collaboration with Flam Chen Pyrotechnic Theater Company. Part spectacle, part documentary and part fantasy, Nobody Speaks pulls audiences away from reality, presenting an alternative view of modern identity and the meaning of international borders.

The central characters of the piece are Nadie and Alguien, expressing the dualistic nature of identity in our day-to-day lives: everyday we come into contact with thousands of nobodies, people such as waiters and police officers who only exist to us as their job or function. In contrast, we see only a handful of somebodies everyday: our coworkers, family and friends, who each have a unique identity and emotional connection. The characters Alguien and Nadie move through a world in which all international borders have mixed together, coming to the realization that far from being absolute, their identities are fluid––they constantly switch between being Somebody and Nobody, just as we all do.

The video and written material of Nobody Speaks is based upon an on-going series of interviews conducted by Verbobala with real people from all walks of life: from a rural Mexican farmer to a Canadian Ph.D. linguist. These interviews are then sampled, remixed and rearranged, becoming bases from which fictional characters are created. Poetry is written in the voice of each character, and these voices all speak to the central themes of the piece. Each character is shown to be another example of Alguien or Nadie––a Somebody or a Nobody. New interviews are conducted before each presentation of the piece, making each performance uniquely site-specific and multi-lingual.

Nobody Speaks makes use of three to six video projectors and a stereo sound system. The piece is performed by the three members of Verbobala, who play the main characters Alguien and Nadie; along with three to five members of Flam Chen, who take on silent roles as stilt walkers, aerialists suspended from silk, and physical theater actors.

Nobody Speaks has a total duration of 60 minutes.

Previous performances of Nobody Speaks
• 2008 26th Annual Tucson Poetry Festival, Arizona, USA

Performance space
Nobody Speaks is best presented in large warehouse-type spaces but can be adapted to theaters.