Art in Odd Places: Normal

  I want to use drag, improv music  on tuba, and fortune telling to give people a deep look into themselves. My character, Peacock, is a goddess of tuba and oracle that has the ability to look deep into peoples’ souls to see what lies beyond the skin. I use what some call fortune telling, psychic ability, or just plain people reading to get into peoples’ head. Then, in a drag term, read them for filth. By having a “supernatural” entity or someone that they have never interacted with before, tell them facts about themselves, has the ability bring into light them problems that plague our everyday life. It gives audiences a space to finally see that we are a collection of humany, and not islands lost at sea.

The drag is a form of clownery that allows people to have the space to laugh, but they are also drawn in because of the odd beauty. The tuba enhances this idea of clownery, but yet throws them off audiences even further with avant garde tuba playing. Avant garde tuba playing is not just the typical bass line and low notes. I have mastered my instrument, and have the ability to use 8 octaves, extended techniques, and even a sound language in performance. Through the use of this mastery, I can show people that tuba is a beautiful and intense instrument.

I use myself, a tuba, maybe some musical items to make weird sounds on tuba, and drag. The tuba is loud, but I make small intimate experiences that can change people's perspective on so much. Building this dichotomy of big and small, male and female, loud and soft, and community and isolation. This performance can really make people see that we are a community of problems, and that we all have the ability to help each other and ourselves. That we do carry our problems with us, it just takes a drag queen to call us out on them. Finally this performance offers the old additive “that in the odd, there is beauty that must be found.” We all need to laugh at others, but we must all learn to laugh at ourselves. This type of performance has really given the space to change our inner selves and our collective humanity.

Tif Holmes brings a whole new element of artistry to the performance with her abilities of performative photography. She will be using elements of photo documentation of both the audience and the performance itself. This element of performance will begin to blur the line of what is the performance and what is the audience. It leads audiences to question what is the role of the observer in the performance, and how the role of the audience can impact the outcome of a performance. Cameras can make people feel beautiful or guilty, just by being cast in a photographer’s view. This aspect embeds the idea of what is real and not real, giving the audience the ability to question what is reality.