Hannah Werner

Nine steps. Nine different steps is what it takes for Sarah Isles, full-time stand-up comedian, to get divorced in the country of England. With this long, gloomy process still in the works, Iles takes you through her journey after filing for divorce from her husband of four years, and the up and down process that led to her current mentality of peace and happiness. The title of this performance, Decree Absolute Vodka, ties into her emotional reaction to her divorce for she, admittedly, stated she could tell she began drinking too much vodka because it was no longer done “sociably”. This is when she started to see her therapist, Pam. Pam is great. Happy and married for twenty-eight years, and giving the best advice to Iles throughout their time together. Pam’s main advice was to stay away from dating for a while. This advice was not taken by Iles. Partner after partner, story after story, we heard the dirty, hilarious, and bizarre situations she got herself into throughout the process of her divorce. With her later seeing a consistent pattern in the men she was seeing and the “ghosting” she would experience (“ghosting” is a modern term for someone disappearing from your life without any warning or verbal confirmation), Iles, confused and angry, decided to ask on social media if men ghosted women and why they did it. She received a lot of answers and found there were five top answers. This was my favorite part of the performance… We played a version of the game Family Fortunes (similar to the American Family Feud) to guess what these top five answers were. Separating into teams, we were able to establish the answers (which I will not give away!). This was very engaging and it felt like I was there with her, and although I haven’t been ghosted before, I can imagine the frustration that would come with that; especially after hearing what she found to be the top five reasons for why!

Throughout these experiences, Iles explained in the performance that she is past feeling sad about being single and receiving the comments like, “you’re single? Oh, you’re so brave” and “I’m so sorry, you must be so lonely”. Iles explained that her story is not over, but right now she is happy and content where she is at. When I heard that, I felt a strong feeling of joy for her. After hearing all she had said about her experiences, I felt relieved that she was doing well.

This stand-up performance was comical, honest, and slightly pornographic. It all tied together to make a hilarious performance that felt authentic and relatable in a sense that I understand how it feels to be a woman and the daily struggles we face. Occasionally there were references that I did not understand given the English/Scottish origin, but I got the main idea. Fortunately for me, I had an amusing time listening to her story. Unfortunately for her, the law has now been changed. It now only takes 6 steps to get divorced in England. She could have been divorced by now.

Hannah Werner

We all have a sort of pride when it comes to our nation. Each country with its history, culture, and diversity, has citizens with their own sense of patriotism. Sometimes an overwhelming sense of pride can create barriers between other countries, specifically when it leads to nationalism where a country finds oneself more superior than another. However, other times we can learn from one another and appreciate the patriotism that a country can have. This informational and eye-opening side of national pride was obvious during the Military Tattoo performance in Edinburgh, Scotland. Strong organization was required for the Military Tattoo members around the world to perform their music and dance routines. All incredibly in sync with one another and perfectly on beat, I couldn’t even imagine the time and dedication that it would take to accomplish such a performance. With the cheering of the crowds containing people from around the world, it was an exciting and rare occurrence to see everyone come together to celebrate our backgrounds. With the inclusion of some history from the countries that performed their songs and dances, this put in perspective the amazing journey that each country has been through to get to the point they’re at now. We are all people battling different battles, yet all living life trying to find peace with ourselves and one another. This performance showed me that we are all one in the same, yet uniquely different in how we got here and the cultures and values that define us. Cultural performances like this one break those barriers that can sometimes be put up when we see our countries as completely different and unrelatable to one another. Framed by “cultural conventions” (Hamera and Madison), like clothing, demeanors, languages, etc; I could get a sense of the many differences our countries have, but at the same time I could see the excitement and eagerness that each nation had while performing. We were all here for the same purpose: to share and celebrate our diversity, not to fear or shame it.

This cultural performance was absolutely incredible and breath-taking. I’ve never seen something that has brought more people whom have entirely different backgrounds and culture come together. To say that it was a great performance doesn’t do it justice given the banding together and the colorful, unique performances. I was completely in awe the entire performance. My favorite part was the fireworks when all of the members from each group came together to dance with one another. We may not all have the same beliefs, values, or attitudes, but to harmonize with each other and coordinate such an incredible final song and dance shows that people want to take pride in one another. We want to love, we want to belong, and we want to matter. I LOVED THIS.

Reference:

“Performance Studies at the Intersections”. Madison, Soyini and Hamera, Judith.

Hannah Werner

Two women and their aerial ropes, a mirrored-like floor, and with an intense feeling of slight trepidation and intense curiosity, I sat in my seat before the performance began. Trepidation as I noticed a women with exposed breasts restrained by tight ropes, and a strong eagerness to understand what this performance will be about. With the blue spotlight shining down on the spinning aerialist, I knew something intriguing, and possibly visually challenging, was about to take place.

“She sings knowing she has wings”. These are lyrics occasionally sung (hauntingly) throughout the performance of Everything I See I Swallow, performed by the group, Shasha and Taylor Productions. These lyrics, both poetic and powerful, contain the meaning that both understanding and ownership enable clarity and voice. In this performance, this understanding and ownership revolves around the powerful feeling and ownership of beauty, and also dives into the changing dynamics of feminism; both of which are addressed through a unique dialogue consisting of only a mother and her daughter. We grow up with sexual hunger subconsciously being repressed and remaining a secretive conversation topic, and the theme of this performance addresses the absurdity that comes along with a lack of understanding and acceptance of sexual feelings and desire. With this dialogue addressing different standpoints on feminism, I was able to learn the changing dynamics of what it means to be a woman in what sometimes appears to be a sexually driven society. A mother, who works with a group of powerful men, just trying to seek acknowledgment of her hard work and dedication, believes women should not be submissive to the objectifying desires of men, for this gives them exactly what they want and goes against feminism and the idea of equality. On the other end, we have the daughter, Olivia. Originally believing the idea that beauty belongs to those who feel it, she later learns the power of owning one’s body and sexuality through acrobatics. Throughout the performance you see her self-expression in the form of aerial ropes, tying and tangling her nearly naked self into these spider webs just to gracefully and elegantly untangle herself with each spin and flip. Vulnerability, expression, ownership, and the battling between mother and daughter on feminism all come together to form one aesthetically pleasing yet socially challenging performance to push the limits of how sexuality is viewed.

While at times I felt confused by the abrupt scene changes and semi-ambiguous scripting, these feelings quickly dissipated as the performers dove into further detail as the scenes continued. Overall, this performance was beautifully written and provided me with a sense of pride in being a woman. Feeling shameful of or disengaged from our sexuality doesn’t move us even the slightest step closer to empowerment and free expression as a woman. To do this, we must first acknowledge and understand that we have the capability to have wings and fly. To trust in these wings allows us to sing our song, and to sing our song allows us to accomplish the most human thing possible: to love ourselves and to love one another.

Hannah Werner

Guilt. It’s a powerful emotion that not only causes the worst stomach aches, but also an emotion that may prevent imperative social action from taking place. Through the use of vivid and compelling storytelling, Alanna Mitchell self-discloses her experiences which lead to her strong desire to advocate for climate change action. This performer, a journalist just “breaking the rules” by performing a one-woman show about herself, presented the artistic side of science, which seeks understanding of the knowledge pursued through the act of science. With nothing but a sense of nostalgia for the Canadian Prairies and her fine-tuned skill for asking questions, Mitchell takes you through her journey to explore the changes in the ocean’s climate that have been changing as a result of increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Ultimately, Mitchell explores how we can change the end of this story we call “global warming” through the forgiving nature of our own guilt.

In this performance, Mitchell stood alone. Almost like a conversation, Mitchell disclosed her lack of experience in both science and performance, yet still establishing a sense of trust within the audience as she stood before us announcing her experiences. With each passing scene, a new one began with a change of spotlight in color and location. A circle drawn on the ground around her, in a way representing our view into her personal bubble and her desire to share with the audience. The room was small and intimate, foreshadowing some intimate confessions and serious discussion. Throughout the performance, I was never disengaged nor disinterested in what was about to be said. Mitchell’s convincing attitude toward global warming was enough to give rise to many goosebumps just peering out to hear more.

With a major in meteorology and a minor in communication studies, I have a huge fascination in how communication plays a role in science and the major impact it has on social action. This incredibly thoughtful declaration of Mitchell’s perspective on this critical topic sparked my interest and inspired a burning fire to further understand the role that storytelling has in contemporary issues. This performance was unlike any other that advises social action to improve our climate in a way that is honest, educational, and even slightly comedic! This is an important issue that not only needs to be addressed and talked about, but it also needs action. Like, now. Time, yet a another concept mentioned in Sea Sick, is running out to recover from the damage that’s already been done. So, accept the past, forgive yourself, rid the guilt that prevents us from rewriting our ending, and start by seeing this performance!

Hannah Werner

With performance comes a spectrum of ways to define and measure it. Some may argue it’s merely centered on entertainment while others may argue its yearning nature of broadening perspectives. In my inexperienced, yet enthusiastic, opinion, performance is any way in which a performer can thoughtfully generate an artistic context through which they portray a sense of self or other character. With these characters comes an intriguing approach that attempts to leave the audience with a reaction that makes them feel a certain way after the performance has finished.

In this particularly creative spin on “Jekyll and Hyde”, performed by A Slightly Isolated Dog, it successfully accomplished my definition of performance. With the inclusion of popular, catchy tunes and mildly dark humor, I left the performance feeling amused and satisfied. I felt especially engaged as they included two-way communication before, during, and after the performance. This two-way communication started immediately before I even entered the performance tent when the performers established a welcoming vibe as they addressed themselves to nearly every audience member in line, all while learning a few names (some of which they mention during the performance). With an extensive amount of flattery and humor, these performers changed what I think is my 5 to a 10 on the attractiveness scale. Damn, did I feel good! This communication continued throughout the entire performance as they selected random audience members to participate in various acts, ranging from on-the-spot character creations for audience members to portray, to referring to an audience member’s name as they purposefully digressed from the storyline, which ultimately personified the audience. This characterization of the audience made me feel incredibly included in the performance even though my original intent was to just watch from a distance. There were even a few occasions in which my name was mentioned by a performer to add to the background of the character she was portraying.

These five performers, all performing as individually eccentric characters, also took turns with the portrayal of Dr. Jekyll and Hyde. While to some this may be confusing and disorderly, to me it was more so swift and artistic as they maintained a sense of unity and equality among the performers. This swift and artistic movement of characters created a very energetic atmosphere around the stage and throughout the audience. Let’s just say, boredom was unlikely.

Their ways of including the audience was by far the most impressive aspect of this performance. There is a lot of improvisation that is required when working with an audience given the uncertainty in responses, and to remain in character while responding made this performance seem more so like a semi-scripted comedic conversation, which really made me, as an audience member, feel more valued. I feel performances should leave an impression on an audience, and I think this particular one did just that for myself through its dialect and modern, upbeat twist on “Jekyll and Hyde”. Overall, this performance left me feeling thoroughly entertained and most definitely flattered, and I would 100% recommend it to anyone in need of a nice complement and good laugh!