Anne Bogart's SITI Company: Who Do You Think You Are

As soon as I looked at the setting on the stage, I knew the performance would be odd. My eyes were immediately drawn to the black and white bull's-eye in the center of the floor. Flanking this were two sets of unopened beer bottles. Above it all was a tangle of fluorescent lights, almost appearing to be a nest. 

The show began with a woman walking in on stage, but oddly enough the lights did not dim or alter in any way prior to her entrance. Briefly distracted by this, my attention was refocused as more people entered the scene. Their dress confused me. I could not pinpoint the period they were supposed to be from. Individually they would probably not necessarily seem out of place, but together they somehow seemed to been pulled from the past. Not one particular year or decade mind you, but maybe more of a strange average of the years between 1960 and 1990. It is difficult to explain. 

In terms of strangeness though, the set and dress were nothing compared to the performance itself. Everything was extremely disjointed. Scenes occurred in varying lengths, often with no overly apparent chronology. Between each scene, the lights would darken and an extremely loud droning sound would occur. There was a narrative, but I don't think the specifics of the story were at all important. Instead, I think the feeling it was trying to convey into the audience was more relevant. Unfortunately, I am at a loss as to how to put this feeling into words. Convoluted disjointedness begins to describe it, but it was certainly not all of it. 

During the approximate second half of the performance, things were more straightforward, but only slightly so. The story previously being conveyed was more or less abandoned, but now it was somehow being explained, at least indirectly. The brain and how it works was randomly being explained. Sometimes in technical terms, sometimes in odd human representations. The more that was explained, the more I had a bizarre sense of being more confused yet more enlightened. I thought I began to understand the first half and its relevance to the second, but now I am seeing multiple possibilities, all of which seem equally wrong and right. 

Despite my slight annoyance and obvious confusion while seeing the performance, I appreciate now how much it made me contemplate it possible meanings and how it all related to myself and the rest of the world. Perhaps that was its real purpose.

SITI: Under Construction...and Caution!

I attended the Saturday evening performance of SITI: Under Construction and I felt a spectrum of unexpected emotions. I'm anxious to hear about Tuesday's performance to compare.

The background setting in the theatre really looked like the stage was under construction. The lights were on and the actors and people were walking around as if they were still in the final setup. There were no secrets or unveiling of the show...it was all out there from the beginning.

As my watch read 7:30, the actors appeared on stage and one actor invited everyone to come find new seats, closer to the front. The audience wasn't full so he insisted that we all sit "in the same room." I cautiously stepped forward and found new seats with my guest.

The show opened with an explanation of the "scenes" that were going to be performed followed by a song. There were a series of "scenes" which appeared to be set in the 1950s. I'm so glad I brought someone because I needed someone to confirm my confusion and ultimately discuss what happened in the show immediately after.

The show continued and I sat back and tried to piece together the diverse group of actors who changed outfits, moved props on stage and conveyed a story to the audience. However there are two moments that stand out to me the most in this show and maybe stand out the most to me in terms of the entire semester.

This is where I would have liked to see a CAUTION sign...
One woman came to the front and read note cards in front of a microphone and to be honest I don't remember what was read because on the rest of the stage each actor committed suicide...well not really but each actor represented a way to end your life. It was graphic. It was disturbing. A recorded tape also played simultaneously like a news broadcast discussing tragedies, deaths, etc. One man took off his clothes on stage and wrapped himself in a large, clear tarp and rolled around the stage to signify suffocation. Another man was masking taped to a pole by other people and hung there between two chairs. He was carried to the side of the stage and he looked like he was wrapped in a cocoon.
At this point a family with a young child got up and left. I was more shocked that there was no warning in the program about nudity or graphic images/messages. I don't think there was much description at all about the performance. I felt bad for that boy because he didn't know what was going on and I remember a time when we left a movie theatre early because it ended up being too sad or inappropriate and I have never forgotten that.

I know this is getting long but I wanted to highlight the other most "memorable moment." After the suicide display, one of the actresses came into the audience with a microphone and went up to somebody and simply asked, "When was the last time you had sex?" The man was embarrassed but went along with it and answered. Several people were asked questions about their personal sex lives and I kept thinking get that microphone away from me!

One thing I almost forgot! At the end of the performance, the audience was invited to come on stage and look at the set and props, even move them around to finish off their message about chaos in society and how they made the set which is random, and changeable. The show came full circle in that sense: the actors invited to the performance in a closer seat and then invited us back to join them on stage by the end.

All in all, it was different and in a way I'm glad I went and have a chance to blog about it because I just have so much to say. It wasn't what I expected and I still don't fully understand it. I've decided it was abstract. It was art.

Art Tatum, playing "Yesterdays"

Though we've already had a class discussing the Charles Rosen concert, here's my comment on the concert: this video of the jazz pianist Art Tatum (1909-1956), playing his version of the song "Yesterdays." Reportedly, when the Rusian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff heard Art Tatum play, he declared Tatum to be the best piano player in the world, in any style.

Grand Text Auto

After taking in the exhibit "Grand Text Auto" at the Krannert Museum, I was struck by how old-fashioned it all seemed, though these artists/writers apparently consider themselves avant-garde. Much of this--narrative interactivity, randomly-generated texts, etc--has been done since the 1950s, as can be seen by this video of William S. Burroughs describing "cut-up" writing.


Cut-Ups from Matti Niinimäki on Vimeo.

The interactive computer game also seemed extremely old hat, the graphics primitive even by late 1990s standards, while the narrative was basically a soap opera that couldn't get going unless you assumed the role of an avatar and nudged it along. Lots of work, little reward.

The work in this exhibit appeared more like ancient artifacts than anything cutting edge--quaint examples of a by-gone age, in the face of the vast resources of (and audience for) interactivity on the web.

The Thousand-Hand Guan Yin

Okay, I'm not sure why I'm posting this, except that it's one of the oddest and yet most amazing dance performances I've ever seen, particularly because all the performers are deaf, and yet all the movements are carefully synchronized with the music. This is the China Disabled Performing Arts Troupe, performing the Thousand-Hand Guan Yin, or the Bodhisattva of Compassion. More information on the dance's symbolism can be found here:
http://tywkiwdbi.blogspot.com/2009/04/thousand-hand-guan-yin.html

Anyway, if this performance doesn't fit the terms "art, creativity and diversity," then nothing does!

Gamelan music video

Since Stephen brought up gamelan music, I thought I'd look for a representative music video. This one is pretty good . . .

Charles Rosen: Pianist Extraordinaire

Piano recitals don't rank very high in my book. I played piano for several years and ultimately dreaded the recitals. I didn't understand why we had to showcase our skills when we were just learning. It was an embarrassing, nerve racking experience that led to my decision to stop playing piano. Lame, I know.

However Charles Rosen changed my view of a "piano recital." The first half of the show was a beautiful combination of peaceful music primarily by Chopin. I enjoyed all the pieces but the first one seemed to stand out the most. I'm not sure if it was because it was the first one I heard and I was simply surprised by his skill but throughout the first half, all I kept thinking about was the first Beethoven piece.

While the concert was approximately two hours, it went by faster than I thought. I really enjoyed switching perspectives to see Rosen's fingers play the piano. The determination and precision in each slow and quick movement kept my attention throughout his final pieces. My hands tired from clapping so I couldn't imagine the exhaustion he felt.

Lastly, he memorized all pieces as there was no sheet music in front of him. He is obviously an experienced pianist and his showcase of talent throughout the performance covered a variety of pieces that surprisingly entertained me with no problem. I worried that the music would lull me to sleep but I was jolted awake by focusing on him as he played.

Pianos are one instrument that always throw me off because I can't possibly grasp how so much sound and quality comes from just one instrument. Charles Rosen was like a one man band or more fittingly a pianist extraordinaire.