What
was the inspiration for this performance?
There
were a few different inspirations I had for making the piece. A couple of years
ago, I read Blake Morrison's As If,
which is a journalistic account of the James Bulger trial. In this book
Morrison discusses the meaning of childhood innocence in our world today. I was
thinking a lot about power dynamics and moral boundaries surrounding this area.
At
the same time as this I reassessed how my body is viewed, and as I have
childlike attributes to my body, I realised that I can often be infantilised
without realising this is happening. I started to think about the implications
of this on a bigger scale, what is it that attracts us to innocence/the
infantile, and what does this mean in terms of our moral codes in
society?
I
am also interested in the pop culture references that infantilisation brings
up, and the commercialised and consumable version of infantilisation that most
people might be familiar/which on a deeper level could easily be seen as
paedophilia. I am interested in exploring where we draw the moral boundaries
between these things being acceptable or being reprehensible.
Is
performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas?
I
think performance is a better place than ever before for the public discussion
of ideas. In the age of social media, we are overloaded with thoughts and
opinions on a daily basis, and instead of having discussions we more often
regress to voicing a wall of opinions with little room for real debate.
What is refreshing about performance is that we are sharing a real space together, witnessing live action, and having the patience (mostly) to see it through to the end. Because someone is communicating to us live there is ripe opportunity for debate and discussion (with fellow audience members - or even just internally with ourselves) that goes a bit deeper than our media saturated age often allows.
How
did you become interested in making performance?
I
became interested in making performance
through visual art. I have always
explored drawing, and the more I got involved with art and the physical
sensation of making - I felt a need to take the making of art further towards
the body itself, which led me to performance.
Is
there any particular approach to the making of the show?
I
have performed this show a couple of times before, and each time it has been a
different incarnation of the piece. On revisiting the show this time round, I
realised that much of my life had changed from the original point of creating
it, which called for a radical re-shift in the whole atmosphere of the
performance. Right now, I am exploring a more choreographic approach,
with a real emphasis on the sound and music I use in the show.
I
am also exploring the form and atmosphere of the piece being more abstract and
taking the audience on a strange journey to explore infantilisation of
women.
Does
the show fit with your usual productions?
I
don't think I have a 'usual' style that I try to go for, and I like to approach
each project a new. I have been involved in such a broad range of performances,
from public processions to pub quiz events, to dance pieces in nightclubs - and
the more and more I make, the less interested I am in creating work that feels
similar to past things I have done - or follows a predictable pattern.
What
do you hope that the audience will experience?
I
want the audience to have a very physical experience. The sound and music in
the piece (designed by Zac Scott) features both bubblegum pop and metal drone,
and the physical movement in the piece is quite challenging for myself as a
performer as it is fast and furious! I want the audience to feel
entertained, whilst being taken on a journey to the morally
reprehensible.
Baby Face
Summerhall (Demonstration Room), Summerhall
Place, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL
Wednesday 1st – Sunday 26th August 2018 (not 5th,
13th, 20th), 13:30
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