performance projects
Drastically falling...behind...

Drastically falling…behind…

As this past year has been unbelievably busy and I haven't had the chance to update this site. So, for now, I will offer you links to my last newsletters and future projects as windows into my work.
Hellzapoppin': What about the bees?

Hellzapoppin’: What about the bees?

New York Live Arts
Oct 5-8, 2022

In this new adventure Rainer juxtaposes text, dance and excerpts from the two classic films—HELLZAPOPPIN’, a 1941 Hollywood musical, and Zero for Conduct, 1933, by French auteur Jean Vigo—as backdrop and inspiration for some of her choreography.  
Nothingbeing

Nothingbeing

Portland Institute of Contemporary Art
TBA Festival: 22
Portland, OR
Oct 5-8, 2022

A collaboration that investigates ways to embody the conundrum of nothingness and "being." 
In the process of re-imagining the site...thanks for your patience

In the process of re-imagining the site…thanks for your patience

Vs.

Vs.

Vs. can be considered part tribunal of evidence — guided and constrained by the statutory powers of the “Interrogator” — and part psychodynamic investigation of a sovereign polity, a collective of accused citizenry. 
patch the sky                       with 5 colored stones

patch the sky with 5 colored stones

Conceived by Daria FaÏn as a multilayered as a collaborative journey in celebration of her 60th birthday,  and the culmination of 40 years of research into the body/mind embodiment within architecture, language, spirituality and communal action.  
Last Audience:                           a performance manual

Last Audience: a performance manual

With Last Audience: a performance manual, a canary torsi reimagines performance for an era of social distance. A series of printed manuals developed in collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago.
Our Labyrinth

Our Labyrinth

MetLiveArts in partnership with New York Live Arts, commissioned a unique, site-specific iteration of Taiwanese-American artist Lee Mingwei's durational performance work OUR LABYRINTH.
ECHO EXHIBIT

ECHO EXHIBIT

I had the pleasure of participating in Asiya Wadud's Echo Exhibit. My collaboration with Chia-Lun Chang chosen as one of the poems exhibited in Lower Manhattan.
Okwui Okpokwasili & Peter Born: Sitting On a Man’s Head

Okwui Okpokwasili & Peter Born: Sitting On a Man’s Head

One of PLATFORM 2020: Utterances from the Chorus‘s central questions “How do we weave a collective song?” builds on the ideas behind Okpokwasili’s and Born’s durational piece, Sitting On a Man’s Head.
Parts of some Sextets

Parts of some Sextets

Gelsey Kirkland Arts Center 15-17 November 2019 DUMBO, 29 Jay Street, Bklyn A piece centered around 12 mattresses, a 17th century American diarist and the madness of action.
Restagings No. 3: Fall (C.A.)

Restagings No. 3: Fall (C.A.)

Fridman Gallery is honored to present Abigail Levine’s Restagings No. 3: Fall (C.A.), a 10 ½ hour performance and collective ritual for a community of performers, writers, and their witnesses. Sunday, October 13th 2pm-12:30am
Yanira Castro | a canary torsi : Live Feed In-Process: Last Audience

Yanira Castro | a canary torsi : Live Feed In-Process: Last Audience

New York Live Arts

April 26, 2019

Last Audience is a piece made with the audience. It grapples with questions of agency, manipulation and the complexity of choice inside a theatrical context.

Albertine Prize Launch 2019

Albertine Prize Launch 2019

French Embassy

972 Fifth Avenue

New York

April 3, 2019

I had pleasure of being invited to read a excerpt from Small Country by Gaël Faye, one of the five finalists for the prize. Translated by Sarah Ardizzone

Even the Stars Look Lonesome

Even the Stars Look Lonesome

Sharjah Biennial 14, United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Collaboration with Caecilia Tripp 5-screen film installation, copper sculpture

Judson Dance Theater: The Work Is Never Done

Judson Dance Theater: The Work Is Never Done

The Museum of Modern Art

September 16, 2018–February 3, 2019

MoMA opens a retrospective exhibition of the groundbreaking work, ideas and artists that came out of Judson Dance Theater.  In conjunction with this exhibition are a series of performances.

Spinning a Yarn

Spinning a Yarn

The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum

Sunday, September 23, 2018 12:30 pm

For the closing of Contra la Pared, David Thomson collaborated with exhibiting artist Analia Segal to create a solo.

Dance and Process at The Kitchen

Dance and Process at The Kitchen

Dance and Process @ The Kitchen

June 9, 6pm: Athena Kokoronis and Angie Pittman

Working with Athena Kokoronis|Domestic Performance Agency and a cast of beautiful performers

TEDx Asbury Park | Life is a Dance

TEDx Asbury Park | Life is a Dance

May 19, 2018

9am

Paramount Theatre

1300 Ocean Avenue

Asbury Park, NJ

The 6th edition of TEDxAsburyPark will be themed ‘Passion.

Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust: Continuous Project-Altered Annually

Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust: Continuous Project-Altered Annually

Early Works & DUST Marseilles, France Porto, Portugal Barcelona, Spain 14th-19th December 2017
Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth | New Orleans

Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth | New Orleans

Contemporary Arts Center New Orleans

New Orleans, LA

Thursday, November 9, 2017 - 7:30pm

Friday, November 10, 2017 - 7:30pm

Saturday, November 11, 2017 - 7:30pm

Saturday, November 11, 2017 - 11:00pm

Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth | Cairo

Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth | Cairo

Cairo International Festival for Contemporary & Experimental Theatre

Cairo, Egypt

Wednesday, September 27 at 10PM

Thursday, September 28 at 10PM

Maya Ciarrocchi | A Remedy for a Constitutional Crisis

Maya Ciarrocchi | A Remedy for a Constitutional Crisis

Abrons Art Center

September 17, 2017 (Constitution Day)

12pm-8pm

A Remedy for a Constitutional Crisis is an eight-hour celebratory reading of the United States Constitution. This event is free to the public and will occur in the outdoor amphitheater at Abrons Art Center on September 17, 2017 (Constitution Day)
a canary torsi | CAST, STAGE, AUTHOR

a canary torsi | CAST, STAGE, AUTHOR

Abrons Arts Center

The Chocolate Factory

The Invisible Dog

September 7-23, 2017

CAST, STAGE, AUTHOR is a trilogy of new works by interdisciplinary artist Yanira Castro and a team of collaborators.
Yvonne Rainer & David Michalek | SlowDancing/TrioA

Yvonne Rainer & David Michalek | SlowDancing/TrioA

St Marks Danspace Project

New York City

June 23 - July 1

Danspace Project premieres SlowDancing/TrioA, a new video installation by artist, David Michalek, in collaboration with choreographer, Yvonne Rainer!
Marta Renzi | In search of lost time

Marta Renzi | In search of lost time

Stamford, VT

June 2017

Marta Renzi invited Aislinn MacMaster, Charles Caster-Dudzick and myself up to the beautiful and cozy home of Marta Miller in Vermont for 5 days to shoot a little something.
Gustave Akakpo | Skins and Hoods (Even Knights Get Forgotten)

Gustave Akakpo | Skins and Hoods (Even Knights Get Forgotten)

Skins and Hoods (Even Knights Get Forgotten) Mini-lab

Abrons Arts Center

3 May 2017

4p

As part of the French Play Series, the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in association with Abrons Arts Center sponsored a mini-lab and a public reading of the play.
RADICAL BODIES: Anna Halprin; Simone Forti; Yvonne Rainer in CA and NY 1955-1972

RADICAL BODIES: Anna Halprin; Simone Forti; Yvonne Rainer in CA and NY 1955-1972

UC Santa Barbara

Hatlen Theater

Wednesday, January 25, 2017 - 9:00am to Saturday, January 28, 2017 - 7:30pm

Radical Bodies reunites Halprin, Forti, and Rainer for the first time in over fifty-five years.
a canary torsi | PERFORMANCE | PORTRAIT

a canary torsi | PERFORMANCE | PORTRAIT

DECEMBER 3 – 30, 2016 and January 5 – 15, 2017
Leslie Scalapino Award Reading | The Triumph of Crowds

Leslie Scalapino Award Reading | The Triumph of Crowds

New Ohio Theater 5 December 2016 I had the pleasure of performing in the reading for Third annual Leslie Scalapino Award for Innovative Women Playwrights. Brigid McLeer is the recipient of the third annual Leslie Scalapino Award for Innovative Women Playwrights. In memory of Leslie Scalapino and her “commitment to the community of experimental writing...
The Commons Choir | BROOKLYN REZOUND (work-in-progress)

The Commons Choir | BROOKLYN REZOUND (work-in-progress)

BROOKLYN REZOUND, created by The Commons Choir in collaboration with composer Darius Jones, is an investigative musical and dance performance that delves into the history of diversity and displacement in Brooklyn.
a canary torsi | CAST, STAGE, AUTHOR

a canary torsi | CAST, STAGE, AUTHOR

This summer I had the pleasure of working on a new project with Yanira Castro.  We began with a series of extended interviews in the Spring and workshops in the Summer. CAST, STAGE, AUTHOR is a trilogy of works to premiere for three weeks in September 2017 at three commissioning NYC venues: The Chocolate Factory,...
Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth

Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth

River to River Festival | LMCC River to River Festival

The Arts Center at Governors Island, Building 110

Thu, Jun 16 from 4:30–5:30pm

Fri, Jun 17 from 4:30–5:30pm

Sat, Jun 18 from 2:30–3:30pm

Sun, Jun 19 from 2:30–3:30pm

“…a (fine) place to consider existence beneath and beyond the earth, “Go Forth” finds an immediate and visceral strength in ancient codes of mourning.” –...
Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust: Continuous Project-Altered Annually

Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust: Continuous Project-Altered Annually

The Kitchen

2-4 June 2016

8p

ADI/NYC PremiereThe Concept of Dust: Continuous Project-Altered Annually” is an ongoing work-in-progress that interweaves formal dance and personal themes of aging and mortality with humor and diverse texts
Maria Hassabi | PLASTIC

Maria Hassabi | PLASTIC

February 21 - March 20, 2016

Museum of Modern Art

Artist and choreographer Maria Hassabi’s PLASTIC is a commissioned live installation in which dancers perform throughout MoMA continuously during opening hours.
Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth

Kaneza Schaal | Go Forth

7-12 January 2016

Westbeth Center

Drawing inspiration from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, GO FORTH is a performance and photo installation that considers how we create space in our lives for the presence of the absent.
Non-Sequitur by Khadijah Queen

Non-Sequitur by Khadijah Queen

10 - 20 December 2015
Thursday thru Sunday 8pm Thu-Fri-Sat, 3pm Sun

Theaterlab
357 West 36th Street, 3rd fl, New York NY 10018 (elevator)
David Bowie | Blackstar

David Bowie | Blackstar

Got a call out of the blue to do a music video…they couldn’t tell me the name of the artist as it was extremely confidential.   When I got to rehearsal and discovered who it was, it blew my mind!! It was a pleasure meeting the man & legend. He will be missed…  
Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust, or How do you look when there's nothing left to move?

Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust, or How do you look when there’s nothing left to move?

25 October 7pm
FIAC & Musée du Louvre / Auditorium du Louvre
Paris, France

28 October
La Cartonnerie - Friche La Belle de Mai
Marseille, France
Patricia Hoffbauer | Dances for Intimate Spaces and Friendly People

Patricia Hoffbauer | Dances for Intimate Spaces and Friendly People

Performances
Wednesday, September 30 through Saturday, October 03
7:30 pm

Gibney Dance: Agnes Varis Performing Arts Center 280 Broadway (Entrance at 53A Chambers)
a canary torsi | Performance Portrait: Live (work-in-progress) (2015)

a canary torsi | Performance Portrait: Live (work-in-progress) (2015)

August 2015
Performance Portrait: Live is an interactive, multi-channel video installation that focuses on the symbiotic relationship between performer and spectator.
Critical Correspondence | Takahiro Yamamoto in Conversation with David Thomson

Critical Correspondence | Takahiro Yamamoto in Conversation with David Thomson

26 July 2015
An informal conversation with Takahiro on aspects of aesthetics, cultural identity, practice and form.
Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust, or How do you look when there's nothing left to move?

Yvonne Rainer | The Concept of Dust, or How do you look when there’s nothing left to move?

June 9–14, 2015
The Museum of Modern Art presents the East Coast premiere of Yvonne Rainer's latest work. This ongoing work-in-progress interweaves formal dance with personal themes of aging and mortality, humor, and diverse texts—intermittently read by Rainer and the dancers—dealing with ancient Mideast dynasties, paleontological findings, and literary quotations.
Daria Faïn & Robert Kocik | BROOKLYN REZOUND

Daria Faïn & Robert Kocik | BROOKLYN REZOUND

21 April 2015
BRIC
As part of BRIC’s Stoop Series The Commons Choir will perform BROOKLYN REZOUND, conceived and directed by Robert Kocik & Daria Fain with another fascinating cast of performers. A sonic and physical mediation on commerce, language, and Brooklyn's history.
Beth Gill | Portrait Studies

Beth Gill | Portrait Studies

April 15, 2015
Live Ideas Festival
S K Y – Force and Wisdom in America Today
Portrait Studies is a commissioned pièce d'occasion directed by Beth Gill. Sharing the program with Laurie Anderson and Deborah Hay.
E-Moves presents Malcolm Low

E-Moves presents Malcolm Low

April 10, 11, 17, 2015
Harlem Stage Gatehouse
E-Moves Festival
Malcolm Low's
In the thrust towards the future…I want to leave something of use
Tanz Farm presents Malcolm Low | In the thrust towards the future (2015)

Tanz Farm presents Malcolm Low | In the thrust towards the future (2015)

March 26-28, 2015
Tanz Farm
Atlanta, GA

Malcolm Low's
In the thrust towards the future…I want to leave something of use
Walker Arts Center presents Tere O'Connor | BLEED

Walker Arts Center presents Tere O’Connor | BLEED

March 19-21, 2015
Walker Arts Center
Minneapolis, MN

The final performances of BLEED
#spacetobreathe

#spacetobreathe

February 2 - March 27, 2015

Gibney Dance Center

The recent cultural climate has shed light on the systemic conflation of violence with the black male body—bodies that are often perceived as threatening. Featuring visual artwork by performing artists Raja Feather Kelly, Jaamil Kosoko, Jumatatu Poe, Will Rawls and David Thomson (in collaboration with artist/designer Tony Whitfield),...
Tere O'Connor | Sister

Tere O’Connor | Sister

JAN 9 & 11, 2015
American Realness
Abrons Arts Center

New York Premiere of the third part of the quartet which culminates in BLEED. In Sister, hyper-intricate rhythmic systems provide the chatter between the performers as they are propelled into an increasingly mysterious cascade of events.
Alain Buffard | Baron Samedi (2012)

Alain Buffard | Baron Samedi (2012)

Premiered in April 2012 at the Théâtre de Nîmes in France, Alain Buffard’s Baron Samedi is named after a Haitian “Vaudou” spirit. A tutelary figure for the work, Baron Samedi invokes ghosts, extracts the perfect dancing body and is a symbol of visibility in life and invisibility in death. Buffard continues his longstanding connection with...
Considering an Exhibition (2009)

Considering an Exhibition (2009)

A photographer wrestles with his conscience in his small attic studio at night. In a crisis of faith, he keeps returning to his stark black-and-white images for proof that what he does matters. After a bath, image and reality merge into a new beginning. By Marta Renzi, with David Hamilton Thomson, camera Jake Goldwasser, photos...
Landing/Place motion capture

Landing/Place motion capture

Here is a sample of some footage from some tests we did at Ohio State University’s Lab while working on Bebe Miller’s Landing/Place.