Monthly Archives: July 2014

HAZE

haze

July 4 – 6, 2014

Conceived & Led by Niegel Smith
Assisted by Robert Leverett and Reed Sturtevant
Presented by Vox Theater: VoxFest 2014

Do you want in? We just might have something that you want.

As a Fraternity brother, as a casting director, as a member of Christian churches and exclusively gay organizations, as an enfranchised citizen of the US, as a part of any exclusive group, artist Niegel Smith has had many opportunities to consider the ways in which social, political and religious organizations both support and impede a broad and inclusive view of self and others.

On HAZE, he invites participants to join in poetic rituals (songs, gestures, oaths and drinks) some old, some brand new, in an attempt to form, gain access to and critique exclusive communities. We will open our borders to some, close them off to others. But will we survive if we do? Will we thrive if we do? Let’s walk and see.

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Rehearsal: The Perils of Obedience

rehearsal-tpo

July 10 – 11, 2014 (Abrons Arts Center, NYC)

Created By Itziar Barrio and Directed By Niegel Smith

As the next part of THE PERILS OF OBEDIENCE, a long-term project that researches power and its diverse embodiments, Itziar Barrio mixes performance, theater, film and live experience to confront established sets of rules and cultivate the conditions for unscripted consequences.THE PERILS OF OBEDIENCE is inspired by Stanley Milgram’s 1961 psychological experiments. In this project four characters are immersed in power dynamics within the same scene and an endless conflict.

In continuing collaboration with theater director Niegel Smith, Rehearsal TPO generates a narrative by placing the cast in specific roles and situations where power is contested, performed, and analyzed. The audience will witness the working process of a rehearsal, designed as a performance and where the entire process will be recorded and edited for a final video piece. The four participating actors were selected in the previous stage of the project, Casting THE PERILS OF OBEDIENCE, presented at the Abrons Arts Center in March 2013. Following an open call, the selection process was exposed to the audience, who could experience the excitement and seduction of an audition.