Trans*istor Radio
Trans* identifying individuals have the power to change the way we view and experience gender, much like the rise of transistor radios changed the way people experience music. But, in order to begin to change this experience and demolish the construction of gender as a binary, the first thing we must do… is listen.
Trans*istor Radio is a site-responsive piece about trans*gender identities that was performed twice at the Swiss Cottage Library in London.
Drawing attention to the binaries of the space by placing the piece in its middle, this piece used the site as a metaphor for binary constructions and labeled areas of representation.
In its first performance, the audience was guided down a path marked out by barriers and string by the use of headphones. As they entered the space through a two-sided pathway marked by security posts, the audience heard various voices calling out the derogatory statements trans* individuals are often forced to face, followed by a spoken word poem by a trans artist who wishes to remain anonymous. At the end of the poem, the audience was instructed to remove their headphones, but continue listening.
Standing at the end of the path, staring them directly in the eyes while they listened to the story of one trans individual, was Robbie Burton-Moore, a trans actor from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. There were three small, brown boxes in front of him on a table. Each contained a material which made a sound when shaken. When the audience had all removed their headphones, Robbie invited the audience to guess what was in the boxes by looking at them. The audience stared back at Robbie in silence. He then shook the boxes and, one by one, the audience could identify the materials inside of them. Robbie explained that they could never have guessed what was in the boxes if they would not have listened to them first, and then asked them to guess his gender by just looking at him. Silence. “How about you try listening to me first?” Robbie spent the next few moments speaking to them about his experience as a trans man. He grabbed a pair of scissors, cut down the barriers created by the string, and invited the audience to do the same if they felt they had truly listened that day.
And with that… the barriers began to fall to the ground.
