What’s Possible When the Arts Belong to Everybody | Lear deBessonet with Brian Stokes Mitchell | TED

譯者: 麗玲 辛

Let me tell you,

當我還是個小女孩，

as a little girl growing up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana,

成長於路易斯安那州的巴頓魯治，

everyday life was full of spectacle.

日常生活總是有各種壯觀場面。

In the months leading up to Mardi Gras,

在狂歡節 (Mardi Gras) 前幾個月，

people from all over our community knit beads into dresses,

社區裡的人們會把珠子編織成服裝，

stirred steaming pots of gumbo,

攪拌著熱氣騰騰的秋葵濃湯，

shaped chicken wire into grand, majestic carriages

用細鐵絲網製作高大華麗的馬車，

stuffed with brightly colored tissue paper.

塞滿色彩鮮豔的棉紙。

On the day of the parades,

在遊行的那一天，

grownups would walk out of their homes as mermaids and alligators

大人們會打扮成美人魚、鱷魚、

and kings and queens.

國王和女王，走出家門。

You could see your second grade teacher

你會看到你的二年級老師

suddenly a peacock with beautiful sparkly feathers.

突然變成孔雀，穿戴著亮麗的羽毛。

We would paint our faces and flow into the street

我們臉上畫著油彩，湧上街頭，

where all day long, the city sang and danced together.

一整天，全城的人一同歌唱跳舞。

Regular people of all ages, races and classes

普通人，不論年齡、種族或社會階層，

who stepped outside of their daily life

走出日常生活，

and into a collective radiance.

融入共同的奪目光彩。

In my world, pageantry was not just reserved for Mardi Gras.

在我的世界裡，這樣的華麗盛況 並不僅限於狂歡節。

Every Sunday at church, voices lifted together,

每個星期天在教堂裡， 我們一同高唱，

inviting the holy down into daily life.

邀請聖靈降臨，來到我們的日常。

Our church staged epic annual Christmas pageants,

我們的教會每年演出 史詩般的聖誕劇，

complete with real, smelly sheep.

甚至還有臭哄哄的真羊上場。

And down the road at LSU football games on Saturdays,

還有路易斯安那州立大學的足球比賽，

the stomp of the roaring crowd,

每逢星期六，喧鬧的觀眾，

led by the marching band and the color guard,

由軍樂隊和護旗隊帶領著，

registered as an official earthquake on the Richter scale

在我八歲時，成為 芮氏儀上地震的定義。

when I was eight years old.

Big surprise, I became a theater director.

毫無懸念地，我成為戲劇導演。

I did so with the belief that these spectacles were more than just fun,

因為我相信舞台場面不只是娛樂，

that something profound was happening

當社區居民一起來到想像國度時，

when our community came together in the realm of the imagination.

某些深刻的情感會降臨。

Pageantry and spectacle are in fact ancient,

事實上，華麗的盛況和壯觀場面

universal aspects of human experience.

自古就普遍存在於人類經驗中，

Going back as far as we can trace the presence of humans on this planet.

一路能追溯到人類 可考最早存在的時期。

Religious ritual and celebration, or carnival,

宗教儀式和慶祝活動，或稱為嘉年華，

provided our ancestors much needed joy,

為我們的祖先帶來了必要的喜悅

and the unique kind of group bonding

和面對日常生存挑戰

necessary for facing their daily challenge of survival.

所需的獨特團隊情誼。

The question is,

問題是，

what do these spectacles mean in our day,

在這個時代， 舞台場面有什麼意義？

when the interconnectedness of our survival

我們生存的相互連結性

is less immediately visible

不再那麼明顯，

and technology offers the constant opportunity for isolation?

科技又一再讓我們彼此隔絕。

As a theater director,

作為戲劇導演，

I search for what a communal gathering in the realm of the imagination

我尋找，在這個時代，

共同來到想像國度的意義。

can mean in our time.

And that quest led me to wonder,

這一探索使我好奇，

inspired by the Mardi Gras of my childhood,

受到童年時狂歡節的啟發，

would it be possible to create the feeling

我是否能夠在舞台上創造出

of a whole city on stage together?

一整座城市同在的感覺？

Well, what better way to try than to stage a production

還有什麼方式比

用 181 位來自 聖地亞哥各地的演員

of "The Odyssey"

with 181 people in the cast, drawn from all over San Diego?

上演《奧德賽》更好的呢？

I chose "The Odyssey" because as an epic story of a journey towards home,

我選擇了《奧德賽》，因為 這個講述歸鄉的史詩故事規模宏大，

it felt large enough for us to all find ourselves inside of it.

每個人都能在劇中找到自己的位置。

As I wandered around San Diego, I started to wonder,

我在聖地亞哥漫步時，開始想，

what if that amazing gospel choir played the goddess Athena

可以試試讓那超讚的福音合唱團 扮演女神雅典娜，

and those salsa dancers,

而那些莎莎舞者，

what if they created Cersei's lair

也許能呈現女巫瑟西的巢穴，

and that amazing high school drumline?

還有讓那了不起的高中鼓樂隊

What if they took care of the big archery contest that saves Odysseus at the end?

來演出最後拯救奧德修斯的 弓箭大比賽呢？

Sort of like medieval passion plays

這有點像演中世紀的受難劇，

when it was like, "Bakers, you take the Last Supper,

「麵包師傅，你們負責 最後的晚餐這段，

butchers, you do the crucifixion."

肉販，你們演十字架上受難這段。」

When "The Odyssey" opened in 2011 at the Old Globe,

當《奧德賽》在 2011 年 於老環球劇場首演時，

even I was not prepared for the wave of joy it unleashed.

我自己也沒料到 它會引發這麼大的喜悅回響。

Look, I'm not a social worker.

我不是社工，

I'm an artist.

我是藝術家。

But the show surprised me.

但這場演出讓我驚訝。

I did the show thinking it would be beautiful,

我製作時，我知道它會很美，

but it was so much more than that.

但這齣戲遠不止於此。

People were overcoming the challenges of fear and self-doubt

人們在演出這想像的戲劇過程中

克服了恐懼和自我懷疑的挑戰，

in the imaginary process,

and somehow it was making them feel equipped

而這個過程似乎讓他們感到

to face the challenges in their real life.

自己有能力面對現實生活中的挑戰。

After the show, we stayed in touch

演出結束後，我們保持聯繫，

and I started hearing anecdotally

我開始聽到一些後續發展，

what I would later learn scientifically.

後來我了解到背後有科學原因。

Students who had been part of the show were doing better in school.

參與演出的學生學業成績改善了。

Some of our elders experienced noticeable health benefits

一些長者健康也明顯改善，

like better blood flow and increased mobility.

如血液循環變好、活動能力提升。

A remarkable man in his early 50s

一位 50 多歲的非凡男子，

who had come to us through a homeless shelter,

由街友庇護所介紹來到我們這裡，

got a job, a steady job,

他在演出後，找到成年的 第一份穩定的工作。

for the first time in his adult life after the show.

And ten years later, he was still employed.

而十年後，他仍然在工作。

He traced it back to performing in "The Odyssey."

他把這一切歸功於 參與《奧德賽》的經歷。

Why?

為什麼呢？

I asked him, and his answer was simple.

我問他，他的回答很簡單。

He said being part of the show reminded him that he had value,

他說，參與這個演出 讓他意識到自己有價值，

and he knew that if other people were counting on him,

因為他知道其他人仰賴他，

he could show up.

而他能夠如約現身。

Well, the Public Theater in New York

紐約的公共劇院

was willing to give me a home for this work.

願意為這項項目提供一個基地。

And in 2012, I started Public Works,

2012 年，我開啟了公共工程計劃 （Public Works），

a program that brings together community members from all over New York City,

這個計劃聚集了來自 紐約市各地的社區成員，

including children and senior citizens,

包括兒童和老人、

domestic workers, military veterans,

家庭傭工、退伍軍人、

men and women rebuilding their lives after prison,

出獄後重建生活的男女、

and Broadway stars,

百老匯明星，

all to create 200-person pageants

每年在中央公園的德拉科特劇院 （Delacorte Theater）

annually at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park.

上演 200 人的盛大演出。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

I want to share with you for fun

我想和大家快速分享一下有趣的數據，

the quick math of how we put a city on stage

介紹我們如何通過公共工程 將一座城市呈現在舞台上。

through Public Works.

In, for example, our production of "The Winter's Tale,"

例如，在《冬天的故事》製作中，

we had 107 community ensemble members,

我們有 107 名社區合唱團成員，

ages 2 to 92,

年齡從二歲到 92 歲，

34 choir singers,

34 名合唱歌手，

16 bhangra dancers,

16 名班戈拉舞者，

12 ballerinas,

12 名芭蕾舞者，

seven "Sesame Street" characters,

七名「芝麻街」角色，

six stilt walkers,

六名踩高蹺者，

five Broadway actors,

五名百老匯演員，

four Capoeiristas,

四名巴西舞者，

three park rangers,

三名公園管理人，

two Chinese lions,

兩隻中國舞獅，

one bear puppet

一隻熊木偶

and one Big bird.

和一隻大鳥。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And that's how we made a city.

我們就是這樣創造出一座城市的。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

But why stop there?

但我們並沒有止步於此。

This July,

今年七月，

18 cities and towns across America

全美 18 個城鎮

will simultaneously premiere their own large-scale public artwork,

將同步首演各自的大型公共藝術作品，

responding to the theme "No Place Like Home."

回應主題「沒有比家更好的地方」。

Local artists partnering with their municipality

當地藝術家與市政府

and their local community health centers

和當地社區健康中心合作，

to manifest what is possible when the arts belong to everybody.

展現了藝術屬於每個人的可能性。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

The beauty of this type of art-making

這種藝術創作的美妙之處在於，

is that people who might not encounter each other

原本在日常生活中不會接觸的人，

in any other aspect of life, except jury duty,

除非是陪審員義務，

gather together around life's deepest questions.

聚集在一起， 探討生活中最深層的問題。

This collaboration reinforces that we all deal with the same emotions.

這種合作增強了 我們都面臨的相同情感。

We have all known love,

我們都經歷過愛、

fear,

恐懼、

frustration,

挫折

joy.

和喜悅。

And because we meet as equals in the realm of the imagination,

因為我們在想像國度中 以平等的身份遇見彼此，

something is possible that's often not when we're separated

不再被分隔、局限於社會角色，

and boxed into our social roles.

有些事因此變得可能。

Whereas in San Diego, my observations about transformation were anecdotal,

在聖地亞哥，我對人們變化的觀察 是根據傳聞軼事，

with Public Works, we brought on a linguistic anthropologist

而在公共工程計劃中，我們從一開始 就引入了一位語言人類學家，

from the very beginning

to trace the impact of the work over many years.

多年來追蹤這項工作的影響。

And the results were the same.

結果是一致的。

In my now 20 years of directing theater,

在我 20 年的戲劇導演生涯中，

everywhere from prisons and shelters to Broadway,

從監獄和庇護所到百老匯，

I have seen seniors recover from strokes and surgery

我見證了老年人在中風和手術後

more quickly than their doctors said was possible.

復原的比醫生預期的更快。

I've seen children diagnosed with autism

我見過被診斷為自閉症的孩子，

who had been told higher education was not an option,

曾被告知不可能受高等教育，

go on to thrive in college and graduate.

但他們在大學裡發展良好，也畢業了。

I've seen a homeless man in Philadelphia

在費城，我見過一位街友，

suffering from severe AIDS-related complications,

患有嚴重的愛滋病併發症，

show up at our rehearsal immediately after leaving his hospital bed

出院後，立即參加我們的排練，

because he wanted to dance

因為他想在那晚的 《堂吉訶德》中跳舞。

in our production of "Don Quixote" that night.

So after all of this,

在經歷了這一切後，

I am not surprised to learn

我毫不驚訝地得知，

that the World Health Organization pooled 3,000 studies

世界衛生組織彙總了三千項

on the relationship between arts and health,

關於藝術與健康關係的研究，

and found that arts interventions have a significant role to play

發現藝術治療扮演了重要角色，

in the reduction of ill health,

可以減少生病、促進健康、

the promotion of good health,

and the management and treatment of disease.

改善疾病管理及治療。

The good news is

好消息是，

that this type of health benefit comes from things

簡單的活動就能帶來這些健康益處，

as simple as joining a choir,

像是加入合唱團、

going to a museum,

參觀博物館、

being part of a weekly drawing class.

每週上繪畫課等。

Loneliness is now an epidemic in our world,

在現今社會，孤獨 已經成為一種流行病，

and the growing belief that we have nothing in common

愈來愈多人認為 彼此的政治或宗教觀點不同，

with people who believe differently from us,

politically or religiously,

因此我們沒有任何共同點，

is tearing our social fabric apart.

這樣的信念正在撕裂我們的社會。

Participating in something much bigger than yourself,

參與比自我更大的事情，

working hard towards a shared good,

努力追求共同的利益，

this restores our sense of connection.

這恢復了我們的聯繫感。

And in the realm of the imagination,

在想像國度裏，

perhaps even behind feathers and sequins,

也許甚至在羽毛和亮片後面，

what becomes visible is the divine spark in every human being

顯現出來的是每個人身上的神聖火花

and in our one collective humanity.

以及我們的共同人性。

Friends, the sociologist Emile Durkheim says something I love and believe in.

朋友們，社會學家艾米爾·涂爾幹 說了一句我很喜歡並深信的話：

"They find a remedy because they seek it together."

「他們找到解藥， 是因為他們共同尋找。」

Thank you.

謝謝大家。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

Thank you.

謝謝大家。

It was so fun to talk to you all about that.

和你們聊這些真是太有趣了。

But now I want to give you a little taste of it.

但現在我想讓大家實際感受一下。

So I do notice an unused piano here.

我注意到這裡有一架鋼琴沒人用。

That's never right.

這可不行。

I want to bring to the stage now, my good friends,

我想邀請我的好朋友上台，

Broadway legend Brian Stokes Mitchell

百老匯傳奇人物 布萊恩·斯托克斯·米切爾

and Todd Almond,

和托德·阿蒙德，

my frequent collaborator on many of the things you saw on that screen.

在很多你剛看到的作品中， 他經常和我合作。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

(Piano music starts)

（鋼琴音樂開始）

Brian Stokes Mitchell: (Singing) To dream the impossible dream /

布萊恩·斯托克斯·米切爾：（唱） 「夢想那不可能的夢想／

To fight the unbeatable foe /

對抗無法擊潰的敵人 /

To bear with unbearable sorrow /

承擔無法忍受的痛楚／

To run where the brave dare not go /

奔向勇猛戰士都不敢去的地方／

To right the unrightable wrong /

去糾正那不公正的錯誤 /

To love pure and chaste from afar /

去愛那純潔而遙遠的愛 /

To try when your arms are too weary /

即使手臂已疲憊不堪，嘗試 /

To reach the unreachable star /

去摘那遙不可及的星 /

This is my quest /

這是我的追求 /

To follow that star /

去追隨那顆星 /

No matter how hopeless /

不在乎多麼無望 /

No matter how far /

不管多麼遙遠 /

To fight for the right /

為正義而戰鬥 /

Without question or pause /

毫不猶豫 /

To be willing to march into hell for a heavenly cause /

願為此勇闖地獄，為了崇高理想 /

And I know if I'll only be true /

我知道只要我忠於

To this glorious quest /

這個光榮的追求 /

That my heart will lie peaceful and calm /

我心將因此安和平靜，

When I'm laid to my rest /

當我安息 /

And the world will be better for this /

世界會因此更美好 /

That one man, scorned and covered with scars /

一個人背負全身傷痕與嘲諷 /

Still strove with his last ounce of courage /

依然努力耗盡最後一絲勇氣 /

To reach the unreachable stars /

去摘那遙不可及的星！

This is my quest!

這是我的追求！」

Audience member: This is my quest!

觀眾：「這是我的追求！」

BSM: To follow that star!

BSM：「去追隨那顆星！」

Audience members: To follow that star!

觀眾：「去追隨那顆星！」

BSM: No matter how hopeless!

BSM：「不在乎多麼無望！」

Audience members: No matter how hopeless!

觀眾：「不在乎多麼無望！」

BSM: No matter how far!

BSM：「不管多麼遙遠！」

Audience members: No matter how far!

觀眾：「不管多麼遙遠！」

BSM: To fight for the rights!

BSM：「為正義而戰鬥！」

Audience members: To fight for the rights!

觀眾：「為正義而戰鬥！」

BSM: Without question or pause!

BSM：「毫不猶豫！」

Audience members: Without question or pause!

觀眾：「毫不猶豫！」

BSM: To be willing to march into hell /

BSM：「 願為此勇闖地獄，

For a heavenly cause /

為了崇高理想/

(Marching band starts)

（樂儀隊開始演奏）

And I know if I'll only be true to this glorious quest /

我知道只要我忠於 這個光榮的追求 /

That my heart will lie peaceful and calm /

我心將因此安和平靜，

when I'm laid to my rest /

當我安息 /

And the world /

世界

Will be better for this /

會因此更美好 /

That one man,

一個人

Scorned and covered with scars /

背負全身傷痕與嘲諷 /

Still strove with his last ounce of courage /

依然努力耗盡最後一絲勇氣 /

To reach /

去摘

The unreachable /

那遙不可及的

Stars!

星星！

(Music ends)

（音樂結束）

(Cheers and applause)

（歡呼和掌聲）