Jenga is a game created by Leslie Scott, which challenges players’ physical skill and mental state. A jenga tower, consists of several blocks, is pre-set before the game starts. Players take turns to remove a block at a time and place it on top of the tower. As a result, the tower gradually becomes a taller but less stable structure. However, once the tower falls, or any piece falls from the tower, the game ends.
The performance, Jenga, amplifies and processes the sound generated from the blocks during the game, which aims to articulate the rivalry and psychological tension among players in a creative, realistic, and sonic context.
As performers, the most comfortable trial we had was the first one, which could be attributed to our intuition driven decisions and relaxing mental state. The attempts we made afterwards were less voluntary, as we tried hard to follow the structure of the first trial and were so worried about knocking down the jenga tower too soon. These worries might have significantly hindered our playing, as we were not enjoying the gaming nature of jenga. Additionally, we have concerned the narrative presentation may lack interactivity, resulting in a boring performance. However, we were surprised that some audience felt so involved when they were watching our performance. The audience could feel the nervousness we had from our shaking hands. It was unexpected that our bodies became a medium that transferred emotions to the audience, enhancing the liveness and interactivity of the performance.
