Lifeboat
This piece of theatre in the dark, created in collaboration with artists Robert Beck and Brigitte Adela, explored the elements of sound and noise to speak to the feelings experienced in the queer, transitional process of ‘coming out’.
The Lifeboat was an installment of an ongoing exploration into how queer experiences can manifest in performance.
At the beginning of the piece, audience members stand in a dark room and hear nothing but the breath and movement of each other.
Suddenly, the sounds of chains and creaking floorboards begin to permeate the space. They are layered in a way that makes them indistinguishable the longer they play out.
Waves. Creaking. Crashing. Louder.
The sound around them transitions into noise… or is there a difference?
Out of the corner of their eyes, they can see movement that doesn’t fit. Someone has entered the space. But, how is that possible? The door never opened.
It clicks. That person has been here the whole time.
At first, they are afraid. But, they begin to trust this body, to sense that the danger does not exist there.
The audio begins to calm. Their new friend opens the door, revealing a room filled with light.
There’s a rope extending from the door to something in the distance: a lifeboat.
They follow their guide across the rope, pulling themselves along.
Other bodies help them into the boat once they reach its end.
Welcome. Gentle. Solidarity. Safety.
They share secrets in the form of breath blown into a shell.
The guides throw the rope out and away from the boat: there’s no going back.
But they don’t need to. It’s safe here.
This is home.
