Rebecca Patek
Real Eyes

DATE/TIME/TICKETS

May 31 – June 2, 2012

$20.00

There are un-choreographed events in the performance environment that are experienced but not publicly acknowledged; inter-relational dynamics both onstage and between audience and performer, power dynamics, and emotional subtext. These elements of performance which are frequently dismissed or considered wrong, awkward, and uncomfortable become an integral part of the work; to reveal the discomfort and embarrassment of the performer, and create situations onstage of emotional conflict which are funny and absurd, but also frightening or disturbing. The piece will explore my limits as a performer, and also the cultural limits and limits within the art community, in terms of what is socially acceptable, what is “right or wrong”, aesthetically and personally. Using satire to incorporate those marginalized facets of performance, they become the central focus of the work, which allows movement between sincerity and cynicism until the line between the two becomes blurred for audience and performer alike. Together audience and performer will create an active experience in contrast to a passive viewing, subverting traditional notions of performance structure, questioning assumptions and reflexive ways of perceiving. The piece will reside in those moments of disorientation and discomfort because in this place we find the opportunity for transformation.

Performed by Rebecca Patek. Lighting Design by Madeline Best. Special Thanks: Michael HitchcockAnna Jane McyntireMarie DavidsonStephen de OliveiraMartin LeblancVincent LafranceMichal Samama.

The work was made possible, in part, through the Movement Research Artist-in-Residence Program, funded, in part, by the Jerome Foundation and the Leonard and Sophie Davis Fund.

“A Sly Take on Creativity” – Gia Kourlas, New York Times