JULY 19, 1996

GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE 19

EVENINGS OUT

Performance Art Festival examines gender, queer issues

by Dawn Leach

If you enjoy art that comes from nontraditional perspectives, consider an adventure in the unexpected at the Ninth Annual Cleveland Performance Art Festival. If you have

several works, usually including one Featured Artist, one Invitational Artist and three Performance Open Artists.

While some artists will be performing more than once, there are no repeat performances. Works will be presented in various locations, including FAUSTO FERNÓS storefronts in the Colonial Arcade, the Cuyahoga River, and the streets of Cleveland. Most of the works take place in the Colonial Arcade Grand Ballroom. Festival organizers warn that "the historical Colonial Arcade Ballroom is definitely not air conditioned, so dress appropriately and come prepared for the occasional spontaneous wet underwear contest."

Fausto Fernós will perform his work entitled Homsexual Personae.

ever been to a performance art event before, try to forget what you're used to seeing when you go to the theater. Performance art is a whole new experience.

The festival brochure explains performance art as a "uniquely postmodern art form characterized by multicultural artists who refuse to slip between society's cracks (women, minorities, the politically disempowered), presenting an eclectic barrage of interdisciplinary performance work that often breaks boundaries, challenges interpretation and examines the human condition."

The festival includes the works of over 100 international artists, both established and newly emerging. The artists are divided by a panel into three categories. Nine "Featured Artists" were selected to present special events. There are also about a dozen "Invitational Artists” and over fifty "Performance Open Artists." Each Thursday through Sunday evening from July 15 to September 1, an admission ticket will allow you to see

On August 15 and 16, Fausto Fernos will present "Homosexual Personae."

"With his aluminumfoil costumes, letters from Eartha Kitt, and a melodious atonal tribute to Karen Carpenter, queer Latino art-diva Fausto Fernos explodes under the pressure of sexual anonymity."

Nancy Agabian, a writer and performer from Los Angeles, will perform "My Gay Family" on August 17 and 18. Her performance tells the story of her Armenian-American coming of age in 1970s New England.

Many of the other featured performances examine how American culture defines sex and gender. Lynn Lukkas of Minneapolis will create an enveloping multimedia piece that investigates femininity in a patriarchal society. Janet Grau, a Columbus conceptual performance artist, will perform her piece, “long since familiar," which deals with how women are perceived in a voyeuristic world.

Ticket prices are $10 per person for most events, but many events are free. There is free admission for PWAS. To make ticket reservations or to obtain a festival schedule, call the Performance Art Festival Reservation Line at 216221-6017.

As the festival brochure says, "with performance art, there's no reruns, no instant replay and you won't be able to rent it at the video store next month. When its over, its over. Don't miss it."

ING

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