Two things I'm involved in that might be of interest in this discussion:
In collaboration with Jessica Levy (we've spoken once on the phone but never
even met and won't before we start) I'll be 'live writing' at
The End
West Central Street, London WC1
between 21.00 hours and 03.00 hours
on both Mon 9th and Tues 10th of June
we'll be 'improvising' writing onto screen, which will be incorporated into
the VJ mix for projection into the club. Yes, it's a club - others are
sound from Mixmaster Morris, Kingsuk Biswas (Bedoiun Ascent), performance
from Axis, Neil Jolliffe, Mark Jeffrey, Fiona Wright and film from Edgar
Pera and DIva Pictures.
I mention it because it raises a question about duration in relation to
improvisation through performance. Does this count? We will be improvising
collaboratively with no pre-prepared textual or stategic materials for 6
hours on each night. But that improvation is meditaed through technology
and we will be performing discreetly, rather than having a crowd
specifically watching us.
I've done this once before - and really enjoyed the experience.
Otherwise, but still pertinent, there's a text-based video performance
piece of mine showing daily in the bookshop at The Serpentine Gallery in
London's Hyde Park. 'The Jitters' had been around in various 'versions' for
a long time before Anthony Howell and the Grey Suit camera crew teased me
into a multi-camera 'live' (one-take) version. There is improvisation in
other ways than simply textual [the text was 90 per cent sorted] -
mostly spacial, movement, hand-held lighting and its effect on perception
of intimate physical detail. SO, paratextual elements are being very
improvised, effecting reception of a partially improvised text.
Anyway, it's sandwiched (appropriately for the lunch hour) between Mike
STubb's gorgeous short film of Man Act's 'Sweatlodge', 'Arf Arf' which
features Bob Cobbing - Paula Claire and Bill Griffiths in an AbAna swirl at
The Victoria manipulated by some Australian anarcho film makers and Joseph
Beuys's "Eurasian Staff' (a curious programming segue from my own 'staff'
of light). Worth a look and all free. Running between 2 and 3 o'clock in
the afternoon, each day until the 28th of June.
love and love
cris
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