Tricks, Sleight-of-Hand, Balloon Artistry...

Hey guys,

Just wanted to let you know that I am performing on Saturday as part of the Strictly Bona Ball, a benefit for Transfabulous! the transgender arts festival that will happen in the summer in London.



Here's the blurb:

‘Magical Entertainer: tricks, sleight-of-hand, balloon artistry’ adopts the format of roller skate clad cabaret performer of close-up magic. I can neither skate, perform magic, or do balloon modelling. My motivation in combining three pastimes in which I am a complete beginner is in order to occupy a space where I am bound to fail in terms of audience expectations.

It is key to this work that I will be performing to individual audience members/ small groups, because key to this space is the intimacy of such a dynamic, and the awkwardness/ embarrassment/ delight/ surprise at close quarters. By placing myself in a potentially vulnerable position, i.e. that of failing in front of my audience, I believe an interesting space of emotional exchange is opened up.



This work has been created as part of the ‘Strictly Bona Ball’, a fundraiser for the Transfabulous Transgender Arts Festival 2007 (www.transfabulous.co.uk). It will also be part of ‘Losing It: Mad Chicks Sans Frontières: A wild night of Art, Music, Performance & Film’, presented by Creative Routes, Mad Pride and Mad Chicks, and ‘Bird Club Extravaganza’ a live event presented as part of the London Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Film Festival, both in March.

Have been enjoying playing with my performing persona; she is well-meaning, enthusiastic, polite but essentially an amateur, and not very good at what she is doing.
As you may pick up in these photos, my make-up is erring on the side of 'show' but in a not very skilled way. Let's just say I will be aiming for a visible tan tide-mark along my jaw-line! It will be interesting to see how folks react. I'm expecting to experience some gender prejudice! Which is a strong part of why I am motivated to occupy a space of bumbling, and intentionally not trying to occupy a space of 'professional'. I think 'not very confident or competant' is an interesting space from which to sortie into the world, and watch folks prejudice about this unfold!
To prepare for this, I am not practicing skating, magic or balloons! Obviously, on the night, i will want to do well, so it essential that I don't prepare in advance, incase I become accomplished! Ofcourse, I expect to awake on Sat morning cursing my choice to occupy this 'conceptual' space!