I’m on the train to Copenhagen from Berlin and finally finding time to reflect on my journey thus far. I’m not sure what direction to pursue: the poetic diary of a young person, the observational intellectual… maybe something in between? Yikes. I’m two performances deep at this point and feel my offerings have been well received. The Euro-premiere happened in the CalArts Artist As Traveller exhibition in the context of the Rundgang (open studios) at the HBK in Braunschweig, Germany. I decided to perform “GONE FOR GOLD” in an outdoor amphitheater situated in the garden just outside the main gallery. Corinna Schnitt, our host, informed me that this space is underutilized, likely due to its specific – yet intended multifunctionality - link to capital “T” theatre at an Art school. In the spirit of my practice at the moment I was excited to leave the gallery cube for a slightly unusual, more appropriate(?) alternative theatrical setting. This decision produced interesting results and reactions.

Result: the scale of the architecture demanded a much larger performance than previous shows in order to connect, communicate, and effectively entertain. I quickly realized this and allowed my adrenaline to take over and the various characterizations within my script became dynamically inflated.

Reaction: I performed immediately after the HBK President’s address, so the crowd gathered was many, a few hundred! Most people sat on the step-levels of the amphitheater which provided an enticing opportunity for interaction (utilized!). The majority of the crowd stayed for the duration of my narrative.

Many people laughed. Some people cheered. A few cried.

My second performance was in Kassel in the context of the amazing exhibition dOCUMENTA(13). It was hosted at the Theaster Gates project “12 Ballads for Huguenot House” on a rainy Sunday evening. The stage, in a second-floor room with massive old windows, was surprisingly filled- people stood in adjacent rooms and connecting hallways. The energy of Theaster’s complex project creates an eerie, expansive, confusing, potential-filled environment that allows diverse collective engagement. I find this an incredibly generous gesture. This beautifully complicated scene combined with the flavor of my cabaret produced an experience that I am hesitant to put words to, at least at this point! Soul and spirit, however each of us indentify them and with them, were exercised that evening. After the performance a local Kassel woman stopped me to offer sincere, emotionally kind comments about my show (content & form). For this I am grateful. I have said to many people and am not afraid to write it here that if my performances are able to emotionally connect with only one person per show, this is all the validation I need to continue doing what I do. As my mentor, Dr. Anthony Leach, has taught me: in a collective performative event messages can circulate and become much larger than any one of us can intend or know the effects of.

Forward strut!