Category Archives: Critical Theory

Earlier this week, I went to see Dancer Crush at The-Venue-Formerly-Known-As-Dance-Theater-Workshop.  (Erm, I mean: New York Live Arts.)  The performance was a series of solos – or near solos – spotlighting some of the most intriguing contemporary dance artists currently working … Continue reading →

I grew up in rural Illinois on two acres of former farmland, surrounded by many more acres of actively farmed corn and soybeans.  Our house stood on one of the two acres.  On this acre, my dad cut the grass, … Continue reading →

We humans use labels to classify things.  The chaos of life freaks us out, and we create systems and order, to comfort ourselves with illusions of control and understanding.  Sometimes, these labels are useful.  They help us focus.  Without labels, … Continue reading →

As one of Dance Theater Workshop’s 2010-2011 “Context Note Writers,” I contributed a recent post to the DTW blog, on the topic of gender politics in dance.  Check it out, and post your comments here, there, or anywhere.  I look … Continue reading →

Not all art should exist within a market.  Meaning: not all art can pay the rent.  If I have to choose between making the artwork I want to make, and making a living from my artwork (and I do have … Continue reading →

If you subtract time from performance, are you left with visual art?  By simply removing the time contract between art and viewer, does one transform form, or is more required for the alchemy?  Also, must one address the shift in … Continue reading →

Let’s try a little test.  I say, “Experimental Theater.”  You say, “_________.”  Did you say something negative, or at least not altogether positive?  I bet so.  The term “Experimental Theater” has become essentially a label for a certain style of performance … Continue reading →

I just started reading Anna Halprin’s Moving Toward Life.  Halfway through the preface, I was hit hard with the utter repetitiveness of art-making.  We’re caught up in the same dramas generation after generation, stuck on the idea that we’ve found … Continue reading →

I realized on Tuesday that I’m a big hypocrite.  I’ve been curating THROW for four years now.  During those four years, I have asked artists to get focused about what they want from an audience.  I have challenged them to take … Continue reading →

Last night I attended a panel discussion on “Intersections with Art and Performance” at CUNY’s Martin E. Segal Theatre Center.  I don’t think CUNY realized what a hot topic they had on their hands, as fifty or so folks were … Continue reading →