Stories from the Body is a performance series-in-progress, where I am re-tracing lineages that have been disrupted, as a result of migration, from the South Fujian Province of China to Java, Singapore and Malaysia. Coming from the premise that all of human living is performed, I choose to activate this process of uncovering my roots through my body and its voice – my ancestral template is embedded within my physiological being.
The entity I am exploring in Stories from the Body #2 is a hybrid between The Drunken Beauty and Opium Being, extrapolated from a famous Chinese Opera character and the states of the shaman when possessed by the King of Hungry Ghost.
This self-devised performance was presented as part of Cerita Pendek night-works at Melaka Arts and Performance Festival Nov 2014. I was privileged to have the special participation of Bantengan (Bull Trance) Leader, Agus Riyanto from Batu, Indonesia.
This work provoked much controversy, all relevant and difficult - my research process in this field of artist-directed Performance-Anthropology, is in its early days...
posted 2 June 2015
Photos by MRBAR Photo Works