Estado Vegetal (Vegetable State) by Chilean writer-director Manuela Infante explores the similarities between humans and plants and imagines what might happen if plants decided to reclaim dominance over the earth.
Reflecting Infante's interest in slapstick comedy, and based on the revolutionary thinking of plant philosopher Michael Marder, the play takes on the concept of anthropocentrism and questions man's supposed superiority over nature. Experimental performer Marcela Salinas is a one-woman show, playing all of the characters by recording and building on her voice with live looping to suggest the possibility of communication between plants. With a set design that positions plants as co-actors rather than props, Estado Vegetal humorously looks at the value of a life form that takes more time to process information and translate it into motion.
