Blackwatch 3 – non-profit theater.
What happens when the theater you’re watching contains topics and characters that you have greater access to in your own life?
Does anyone want to see a play about that?
Nina – my honest feeling when this scene started was “oh god, please, I really don’t want to see this.” When asked to choose, she says it would be harder to see a play about non-profit theater than, say, “Blasted.”
DL – “Blasted” raises the same issues about character advocacy. How do you feel after doing that show night after night after night – either as one of the victims or as one of the perpetrators.
Lady of the young theater major couple – the political point of “Blasted” was lost because it was such a gross-out fest. Her friend saw the people indulging in this “horribly audacious piece of trash.”
DL – Is this a Brechtian model for audience reaction – keeping your distance and commenting on the gore in a very removed fashion.
DL moves on to talk about virtuoso suffering, in terms of Reed Burney in “Blasted” and Christi as Violetta post-sacking. Another example is Heath Ledger playing the Joker. What’s in it for the audience?
DL – And then let’s extend this to an analysis of Simone Weil and her consummate method acting in her life.
Mary – Why isn’t this political theater?
Colleen – we’ve never said it wasn’t.
A Performance Record of "Venice Saved" 
HELLO.
when blackwatch 3 – non-profit theatre was performed for me earlier in the run, maybe on the opening night, I thought it was going to be something different.
the conversation leading up to blackwatch 3 was similar to the one that seems to happening with some consistency at the performances – ie; politics of non-profit operating practices and funding restrictions/guidelines. ETC.
Everybody was so excited to perform blackwatch 3, I thought is was going to be meaningful, I was excited too! I thought it was going to be about PS122! Vallejo was sitting at the table, other insiders were present too, I thought the scene was going to engage the assembled in a debate on PS122’s involvement in the relocation of the childcare facility that until recently operated in their space. I had no real feelings about it – but it would have been interesting to talk about it. I know Rev. Billy refuses to go to PS anymore because of it, I think he is a genuine man, a man of conviction. SO, when blackwatch 3 happened, I was let down. translation into the personal isn’t interesting. BUT, events are interesting, things that actually happen are interesting. Vallejo defending himself against virulent child car takers was interesting. anybody defending themselves is interesting. context is interesting, being present is interesting. being held accountable is interesting.
OH – something else that was weird to me about the evening’s performance! it seemed people wanted to define political as traumatic, and real, or at least based on real events. Once that started to become clear, nothing seemed interesting. TRAUMA and NON-FICTION – BLECH. up our asses – all of it, I wanted to piss myself. as if being ‘political’ is mediated by ones vicinity to DEATH. fuck that. simone should’ve galvanized her resources, accessed them to buttress her beliefs, her importance could have been her privilege, her body didn’t matter. The traumatized body is only useful. it’s only a tool. there’s so many tools. there’s no end to tools. being a tool – trying to be a tool among tools is a lie. NECESSITY. she died though – depraved by her self. eating herself. wearing herself away. good job simone. seriously. we wear ourselves away. maybe you could have disappeared, like a poor person.
i think of david wojnarowicz.
i think of gypsy and david wojnarowicz.
i love you.