"Sing out loud, in ESTHER’S HONOR!"
The final command from Ayana Evans during Panoply Performance Laboratory’s (Brooklyn, NY) closing festival, Metamorphosis (Nov 16-18) on Saturday, November 17th. Evans’ is holding her signature sparklers as neon blue & green wrist bracelets sway in the dark to the beat in nearly every hand and the room erupts in song, “Your love is my love and my love is your love,” all faces turned towards Esther Neff. We are two thirds of the way through performances on the second evening of the festival and so it’s time for tears, time for joy, seeing soft light in the dark, yes. Co-founded by Esther Neff and Brian McCorkle, Panoply Performance Laboratory (or PPL) has served as a site of experimentation in performance art for nearly 7 years at it’s Meserole St. location in Bushwick. Before that, PPL's PERFORMANCY FORUM has been hosted by other sites, among them the infamous Grace Exhibition Space (which recently relocated from Brooklyn to Manhattan due to the rising price of rent). Metamorphosis marks the transition of a decade-worth of organizing and collaborative community work that has, both out of necessity and choice, resisted the gate-keeping capitalistic model of the art world, providing integral support to the performance scene in Brooklyn and beyond.
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One of Brooklyn's central performance art hubs, Panoply Performance Lab (aka PPL) concludes their 7+ years of programming at 104 Meserole Street this weekend. METAMORPHOSIS (or if you are looking at their tradition of hand-lettered show posters as seen above, METAMORHOSIS) is a 3-day performance, community potluck features performances from artists who developed their performance career with the support of the space.
Organizers note "Under the name PPL, the site has operated as a laboratory for the performance art communities of Brooklyn and beyond, home to hundreds of events, gatherings, meetings, exhibitions, think-tanking sessions, projects, and performances." As a PPL viewer and performer, I can attest to the tremendous and unyielding support offered by Esther Neff and Brian McCorkle in performance art, action art and a myriad of other live art forms. Their lab/incubator has fostered the growth of many emerging artists, collectives and think tanks. This weekend is sure to be full of community gratitude, compelling performances and a few tears. Full schedule outlined below and on our live events listing page. From all of us at Performance Is Alive, THANK YOU PPL!!! <3 An influential group of performance art curators have teamed up to organize Outside/Inside, a multi-day performance event featuring site responsive performances on Spectacle Island, and Georges Island in the Boston Harbor, MA. Outside/Inside is an evolution of last year's Time, Body, Space, Objects. Among many performers were the Brooklyn-based performance collaborative, PPL (Esther Neff and Brian McCorkle) who performed a work influenced by the history of the island. Check out our discussion with PPL about their Spectacle Island performance here. The curatorial team has launched an Open Call for performance works to premier on the islands on JULY 16th and AUGUST 13th. The application deadline is JUNE 3rd. More details below. APPLY! - QUINN DUKES "There is a rich history of art happenings on the Boston Harbor Islands over the last twenty years, including last year’s installment of TBOS4 on Spectacle Island which was under the umbrella of The Island Arts Initiative that happened on Georges and Spectacle Islands during the summer of 2015. The Bumpkin Island Art Encampment which happened from 2007-2011 and was curated by Megan Dickerson, Carolyn Lewenberg and Jed Speare and was co-presented by Studio Soto, an artist performance/screening/exhibit space in Fort Point; Mobius; and the Island Alliance. Boston Cyber Arts, the National Park Service and Boston Harbor Island Alliance collaborated on an ongoing project on the LED screens at the Boston Harbor Island Pavilion on Boston’s Rose Kennedy Greenway for a 24 month stretch during 2014-2016, and through its public art program (formerly called Vita Brevis), the ICA Boston hosted Art on the Harbor islands in 2007. We are seeking proposals for site-specific performance art work that responds to the history and natural environment of each island. This public space in the Boston harbor invites artists to think about their work in a public destination which includes families, tourists and Bostonians. Being conscious and considerate of this audience is a must.
December is an active time for performance art events in NYC! Here is a sampling of events that we recommend!
Interview with PPL (Esther Neff and Brian McCorkle)
By Quinn Dukes The summer is quite possibly the busiest (and liveliest!) time for performance artists. Across the globe, performance festivals, fairs and live-art series awaken the heat-hazed city streets. This weekend Time, Body, Space, Objects continues its programming on Spectacle Island (Boston, MA) with works by PPL, a Brooklyn-based performance duo (Esther Neff & Brian McCorkle). I am excited that PPL is a part of the TBSO4 roster this year, especially considering the performance location. I reached out to PPL to learn more about their upcoming performance concepts and am delighted to share our conversation with you below. Enjoy and head out to Boston this Saturday, August 22nd! - Quinn |
CONTRIBUTORSIan Deleón Archives
July 2023
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