If you’re in need of a digital purge, SHREDDER is the show for you. Pushing back against a world of overstimulation and overwhelm, SHREDDER is a contemporary play written and performed by award-winning artist David McGovern that embraces destruction and bold acts of letting go. The show runs from September 16-20 in Project Arts Centre as part of Dublin Fringe Festival.
Audience members are encouraged to consider what they want to say goodbye to. On stage, McGovern will symbolically destroy the things that may be holding us back or weighing us down.
The sight and sound of the shredder will act as a prompt to return to the senses. Is all this screentime making us numb, and if so what can we do to combat this?
Speaking about the performance, McGovern teases a feeling of freedom:
“In a time when we’re drowning in content, it’s a huge relief to say ‘no more’. Shredder feels like checking into a hotel room in a new city – your past is gone and you can be any version of yourself. It’s liberating, energising and quite seductive.”
SHREDDER embraces focus and taking ownership over your own mental hygiene. The show arrives at a time when we’re never been more bombarded with information. It takes a stance against endless notifications and constant scrolling. It joins the movement of ditching smartphones in favour of dumbphones, and Irish pubs embracing tech bans, which point towards a desire for disconnected, tech-free experiences.
The overload of information in our modern world is not just a nuisance, it is harming the planet. Ireland has 131 data centres, which consume over 20% of our national energy. Up to 88% of this data is considered ‘junk data’, much of which is never accessed or used again. We are accumulating too much, and we are collectively paying the price of hoarding information.
McGovern’s first Dublin Fringe show was 2022’s Corrupting Care (nominated for Best Production and Wild Card Award) that also aimed to disrupt and expand how we view the modern world. He is an established artist, awarded Next Generation Artist in 2022 by Arts Council of Ireland, and a writer with a strong track record, having been published in The Stinging Fly and Holy Show magazine.
SHREDDER is also made possible by a talented team that sit between dance and theatre, with Movement Director Anderson de Souza (Performer in PARTY SCENE by THISISPOPBABY), Performance Director Ois O’Donoghue (‘Director of the Year’ from The Arts Review for HATE F%#K), Sound Designer Ultan Stanley (HYPER by Jaxbanded), Lighting Designer Colin Doran (Tom Moran is a Big Fat Filthy Disgusting Liar by Tom Moran), studio photography by Amanda Braide and cinematography by Albert Hooi (Cinematographer on DeSelby Part 2 by Hozier).
SHREDDER runs from September 16-20 in The Cube, Project Arts Centre. Tickets start from €10 and can be booked via Dublin Fringe Festival here.
