Liminal Acts

Description:

Sharon Alward held an evening banquet in the Grand Luxe Hall where attendees mingled and socialized with each other and Alward. The artist wore a pair of neon angel wings for the duration of the performance, a symbol with iconographic and cultural meaning as well as a nod to the commercialism of neon signs.

Tables were set with platters of hor d’oeuvres, desserts, fruit punch, candles, and flowers. In the background, an autobiographical video of the artist was projected. With no structured timeline, attendees were free to come and go. As the banquet came to a close, the remaining guests and staff took to the streets to distribute the leftover food.

The performance subverted traditional theatre, clichés of climax and conclusion, and the conventional information structure. Liminal Acts worked within a non-matrixed performative structure which was based on the audience relationship and the potential for transformation through creating a sacred space and employing rituals of a social gathering and meal sharing. The performance referenced the theories of anthropologist Victor Turner, specifically the experience of liminality; “the betwixt and between” as the threshold where this transformation occurs.

This work was a part of the Contemporary Ritual Series curated by Victoria Singh. 

Video documentation available upon request.