so you’re one of them now

March 17th & 18th, 2009 (The Public Theater; New York, NY)

Todd Shalom & Niegel Smith as PERMISO

This performance debuted as “untitled” in the basement laundry room of the Public Theater in Manhattan. Participants were invited to join the artists in groups of two every 20 minutes. As the evening went on, the performance evolved and the ‘older’ participants taught the ‘newbies’ how to engage with the work. Fiercely physical and emotionally unbounded, “so you’re one of them now” engaged participants in the play and uncertainty when sequestered in a space with uncensored artists. The title was taken from a participant’s mouth at the end of the final performance.

PILFERed

From the now defunct SPY MAGAZINE.

Commentator

A response to: Dude, You’ve Got Problems

“ I went to a conference on bisexuality about 15 years ago. A woman there said to me, “I wish you gay men would stop putting your energy into fighting homophobia and instead put your energy into eradicating misogyny. Because the problem society has with gay men isn’t that they’re with other men – it’s that they’re men who are “acting like women.” If it were ok to be a woman in this culture, homophobia would just disappear.” I think she’s right.”

— Jess Thompson-Adams
Dude, You’ve Got Problems

Hmmm…. her argument isn’t very prismatic “fighting misogyny in stead of homophobia” and her conclusion is a bit simplistic “homophobia would disappear.” But I do think that there is a very insightful observation in this quote. When we step outside of prescribed gender roles it disrupts the dominant culture. I welcome the challenge to shift. I’d argue that by emulating, celebrating and nurturing complex gender expression we will “fight” both misogyny and homophobia.

Commentator

I think the sagging pants style is remarkable and may be unprecedented in the history of fashion because it combines not just a static piece of clothing, the pants, but also the drama that goes along with the possibility of the pants falling. And then there’s the concomitant activity of hitching and slipping and hitching and slipping. For those of us who find young men sexy the style is compelling. It seems like a lot of work to wear your pants this way but for the viewer it is dynamic, entertaining and just really fun. Name me another clothing style that involves so much theater.

— Robin White, Oakland, CA