Silencio/Silence

This is a short improvised performance by Michelle Isava, Eliseo Solís Mora and myself at Territorio Desdibujado 2.0 (Blurred Territory 2.0), curated by Solís Mora, as part of the 11th Velada De Santa Lucia in Maracaibo, Venezuela.

What ended up happening reflected conversations we'd had in the days before about difficulty/failure communicating across language barriers and about forcing one's culture/solutions onto others - both these themes derived from our collective experiences travelling and encountering these things in our interactions.

In another performance that night (shown in still image above, but not recorded on video), we improvised a very loud argument between Eliseo (first language spanish) and myself (first language trini) where every point of argument and verbal jab between us had to be translated by Michelle, who speaks both languages. The performance ended when a joke (also translated) dissipated the tension.

These were my first experiences with this kind of performance.

A video recording of Silencio/Silence can be seen here: http://www.vimeo.com/21268676

Photo courtesy Carlos Germán Rojas

--