WESTERN FRONT – Cabaret Voltaire

Description:

Western Front presented a series of performances, screenings, and events in homage to the “Cabaret Voltaire,” an artistic nightclub in Zürich, Switzerland founded by Dada artist Hugo Ball.

Hosted by Michael Morris, Cabaret Voltaire featured an evening of performances in the Grand Luxe Hall by sound poets Steve McCaffery, Michael Dean, and Steven Smith in collaboration with jazz musicians Ted Moses (saxophone), Mike Malone (trumpet), and Don Naduriak (piano). The artists performed four movements across two sets, and a selection of Dadaist films were screened during the intermission. Other highlights include an appearance by Vincent Trasov in a recreation of the costume worn by Hugo Ball at the original Cabaret Voltaire in 1916.

Cabaret Voltaire also included a screening at The Pacific Cinematheque (now The Cinematheque), and an exhibition of Dada ephemera.

Video documentation is available upon request.

Three people stand singing in front of two microphones, using hand and gestures and wearing excited expressions. Two people are holding notebooks. Behind the trio there is a grand piano and a plant. The three are illuminated by a spotlight.

Two people stand holding notebooks and singing into two stand up microphones. A third person is crouched beside the two, with their hands resting on their thighs, also singing. The trio is illuminated by a spotlight.

One person stands alone at a microphone. There is one microphone on a stand to either side of them. They stand in front of a blank projector screen. The person is back lit by a spotlight, their shadow lays in front of them.

Three people perform in front of stand up microphones. On the left a person stands with their arms outstretched and shrugged, the middle performer gestures as if putting food into their mouth, and on the right the performer points out in front of them with their left arm. They all stand in front of a blank projection screen.

Four people stand before three stand up microphones, all engaged in a different activity. One person is looking to their right, inquisitive, holding a notebook. Another stands front facing with a blank expression, holding a brown paper bag and a drink. A third sticks their tongue through a ripped sheet of paper. The fourth is decanting liquid into a glass in front of the microphone, as though to capture the sound.

Four performers stand before stand up microphones all in different phases of expression. One watches intently, holding a brown paper bag with both arms. The other three performers flail an arm in passionate expression.

Three performers stand in front of three stand up microphones. Debris litters around their feet. Liquid hangs in mid-air. The performer in the middle of the three attempts to catch it in their mouth. The performer to the right stands idly with a jug and the performer to the left wears a concerned expression. There is a fourth performer on the far left side of the image playing the trumpet.

Four people perform passionately in front of four stand up microphones. One performer is playing the trumpet. The ground is littered with debris and wires from the microphones. They stand in front of a piano, a plant, and a blank projection screen.

Three people perform in front of three stand up microphones. On the right, a performer is giving an operatic belt with one hand outstretched and a notebook in the other. Centrally, a performer leans back with one hand to their groin and a drink in the other. The third performer stands a few meters back, holding a brown paper bag with both hands and wearing a grin.

Related People

Captions:

Michael Dean, Steven Smith, and Steve McCaffery at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Michael Dean, Steven Smith, and Steve McCaffery at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Steve McCaffery at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Steven Smith, Steve McCaffery, and Michael Dean at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Steven Smith, Mike Malone, Steve McCaffery, and Michael Dean at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Steven Smith, Steve McCaffery, and Michael Dean at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Steven Smith, Mike Malone, Steve McCaffery, and Michael Dean at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Mike Malone, Steve McCaffery, Steven Smith, and Michael Dean at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.
Mike Malone, Steve McCaffery, and Michael Dean at Cabaret Voltaire, photo documentation, Apr 15, 1978.

Western Front is a non-profit artist-run centre in Vancouver.

We acknowledge the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations as traditional owners of the land upon which Western Front stands.