#but like. you can encourage people to explore and interrogate gendered life experience without being an idiot and assuming gender experience

[neverendingford]

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[khalilhumam]

Through the Orientalist looking-glass: An interview with Moroccan artist Lalla Essaydi

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Through the Orientalist looking-glass: An interview with Moroccan artist Lalla Essaydi

Lalla Essaydi, Harem #2, 2009. 71 × 88 in 180.4 × 223.5 cm.

Moroccan artist Lalla Essaydi, 64, is well known for her dazzling, multidimensional staged photographs, which in spite of their simplicity, masterfully capture and challenge the complexities of social structures, women's identities and cultural traditions.  Essaydi‘s artworks not only reinvent visual traditions; they also “invoke the western fascination with the odalisque, the veil, and, of course, the harem, as expressed in Orientalist painting.” “My work speaks primarily in terms of Moroccan identity, but visual identifiers such as the veil, harem, ornate ornamentation, and sumptuous color also resonate with other regions in the Muslim and Arabic worlds where the place of women has historically been marked by limited expression and constrained individuality,” Essaydi said in an interview with Global Voices.  Raised in Morocco, Essaydi has lived in Saudi Arabia and France and is currently based in Boston. She has exhibited at the National Museum of African Art in Washington, D.C., the Art Institute of Chicago, the Fries Museum in the Netherlands, among others. Essaydi is a poet of architecture, the female body, and color. Where letters overwhelm her composition, the bold presence of women and the veiled apprehension in their eyes disrupt all equations of beauty. Excerpts from the interview follow.

Moroccan artist, Lalla Essaydi. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Omid Memarian: Over the past two decades you have been creating striking artworks that conceptually challenge social structures and comment on power and authority. How did you find and develop this visual language?  Laila Essaydi: My approach to art in general, and my relation to Islamic art in particular, is deeply rooted in my personal experience. As a Moroccan-born artist who has lived in New York, Boston, and Marrakesh and who travels frequently to the Arab world, I have become deeply aware of how the cultures of the “Orient” and “Occident” view one another. In particular, I have become increasingly aware of the impact of the Western gaze on Arab culture.  Although Orientalism most often suggests a 19th-century European vision of the East, as a set of assumptions it lives on today: both in the gaze of the West and in the way Arab societies continue to internalize and respond to that gaze. In its early form, Orientalism was a literal “vision,” finding expression in the work of Western painters who traveled to the “exotic” East in search of cultures more colorful than their own, I have used it as a point of departure in much of my own work—in both painting and photography. The imagery I found in Orientalist painting has resonated with me in tricky ways and ultimately helped me situate my own experience in a powerful visual language. In my photography, I explore this space, whether mental or physical, and interrogate its role in gender identity-making, while engaging with centuries of cultural heritage and artistic practices. For instance, my images of women, embedded in Islamic architecture, recognize and represent an alternative to similar spaces, as imagined for women, in painting and photography, from within the Arab and Muslim worlds. My fusion of calligraphy (a sacred art traditionally reserved for men) and henna (an adornment worn and applied only by women) similarly reproduces artistic traditions and practices common in everyday life in Islamic cultures while transgressing gender roles and the boundaries between private and public spaces.

Lalla Essaydi, Harem #1, 2009

OM: You were born and raised in Morocco, spent 19 years in Saudi Arabia, moved to Paris and studied there and finally landed in the U.S., studied, and lived there. How has this geographical path impacted your art, your perception of women, and their presence in your photos?  LE: My work is inspired by personal history. The many territories that converge in my work are not only geographical ones but territories of the imagination, shaped, above all, by childhood and memory—by these invisible influences. My work cannot be reduced to Orientalist discourse. Orientalism has given me a lens through which to focus on the converging territories of my work and through which to see more clearly the influence of Western imagination in the Eastern ways of conceptualizing the self. At a more personal level, my creative practice is a means through which I can reinvent and position myself in different times and cultural contexts. At the same time, I also celebrate the cultural richness of Morocco, the Middle East and North African countries. Although I tend to think of my work as, first and foremost, being about the experience of women, I would say that these elements are also significant. They do not happen incidentally but are part of the inherent qualities that I bring to my vision and my work.

Lalla Essaydi, Bullets Revisited #37, 2014.

OM: How did earning a BFA and MFA from Tufts University and the School of Museum of Fine Art contribute to your career and artistic transformation? Was the education something you expected? LE: I enrolled in the Museum School because I wanted to return to Morocco and be able to pursue my hobby with greater knowledge and skill. Instead, I found my life’s work. I learned that some of the most important things in our lives happen unexpectedly. We take a class in painting and discover an entire new world at our fingertips: waiting to be grasped. We take a class in painting and find art history, and installation, photography and so much more. We look for a glass of water and find an ocean, calling to us. And we answer the call.  I never dreamed I would spend seven years in this environment, immersing myself in everything the School had to offer, and learning more than I had ever imagined was possible.   This was, and is, a school of artists, designed by and for artists: where students are free to choose what they want to learn. It only offers elective modules, and there are no mandatory classes. When we realize the riches that are available, we want to absorb everything. At first I was overwhelmed. I was one of those students who roamed the corridors of the School late at night, peering into the empty rooms, with their silent trappings of whatever medium was taught there.  Eventually, the School taught me a second lesson. With all these opportunities and this great array of artistic riches, with this enormous freedom to choose, comes responsibility. Responsibility first means discipline, and setting priorities, followed by learning new skills and techniques. And then comes self-direction, as we learn and understand new ways of thinking about art, and the ambition to do something important with our lives.   My career offered me something else, something I did not expect. This very public environment offered me a private space, something I had never had at home. It offered me a space where I was free to express my thoughts in private, without the inhibiting knowledge that they were available for all to see. This enabled me to explore and bring to the fore aspects of my own interior life I hadn’t even known were there. While I knew that creating art is an intensely personal experience, I also learned that it happens only with the help of a lot of gifted and dedicated people: people who teach and guide, people who encourage and nurture, people who inspire you to keep reaching to create what is excellent and beautiful and true. You can tell, I loved the School. 

Lalla Essaydi. Les Femmes du Maroc: La Grande Odalisque, 2008

OM: Women and their private space in the Arab world are central to your series “Harem” and other work. Where did this curiosity and focus come from and sow has it changed over time?  LE: My work reaches beyond Islamic culture as it also invokes the Western fascination with the odalisque, the veil, and, of course, the harem as it is expressed in Orientalist painting. Orientalism has long been a source of fascination for me. My background in art is in painting, and it is as a painter that I began my investigation into Orientalism. My study led me to a much deeper understanding of the painting space so beautifully addressed by Orientalist painters in thrall to Arab décor. From its terrific prominence in these paintings, this décor made me keenly aware of the importance of interior space in Arab/Islamic culture. And finally, of course, I became aware of the patterns of cultural domination and predatory sexual fantasy encoded in Orientalist painting.  Memarian: Your artworks incorporate multiple layers, a beautiful and colorful layer on the outside, and inviting mixed layers of calligraphy, henna, ceramic, and also models. The latter rests on the edge of cliché, but it also creates a lively and mystical visual labyrinth. What is it like to navigate this fine line?  Essaydi: It is important for me that my work be beautiful. While it is received very differently in Western and Arab contexts, its aesthetic is appreciated in both. More critical for me, however, is that the photographs achieve a balance between their political, historical and aesthetic content, as well as make a statement on art. But the fact that I have sometimes been critiqued for, on the one hand, perpetuating expectations and stereotypes rather than refuting them and, on the other, for exposing that which should remain private, indicates that responses to my work are highly subjective, context-specific and likely culturally informed. Tempered by the ambiguity of the work’s literal meaning, perhaps defaulting to the most accessible and intuitive reaction: perception of the stereotype. Nevertheless, with deliberate subtlety, my work introduces alternative, challenging perspectives on canonical 19th-century Orientalist paintings. As a female artist from the regions depicted, mine is an historically repressed voice that “complicates any neat framing of the canon.” Drawing on similar visual devices, I try to engage it in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable dialogue, and re-situates the Orientalist genre in the history of art.

Harem Revisited #34, 2012

OM: In a 2012 interview you said that your models “see themselves as part of a small feminist movement.” While “freedom” is one of your main concerns, and many of your works seem to reconstruct traditions, how does this contradictory formula have such a liberating result?  LE: My work may seem to “reconstruct traditions,” but in fact I am trying to create a new understanding. The liberating result comes because in many ways, performance is an intrinsic element of my photographs, evident in the figures’ careful composition, in the physical act of writing and, more importantly, in the intensity of the sitters’ embodied presence that also renders them subjects rather than objects.  Through writing, I lay bare personal thoughts, memory, and experiences that belong to me and the women featured as individuals within a broader narrative. Though my work speaks primarily in terms of Moroccan identity, visual identifiers such as the veil, harem, ornate ornamentation, and sumptuous color also resonate with other regions in the Muslim and Arabic worlds where the place of women has historically been marked by limited expression and constrained individuality.   While my work evokes the region’s traditional aesthetics and social practices, I insert a dimension that complicates them: a personal narrative that takes form in the written word. In volumes upon volumes of text, these women voice critical reflections on and interrogations of memories, all captured within the space of my photographs. At the same time, I write about historical representations of Moroccan, Arabic, Muslim, and African women. To understand my work, then, one must examine long-standing preconceptions held by diverse peoples over time, as well as by myself.

Lalla Essaydi, Bullets, Jackson Fine Art. February 3 – April 15, 2017

Written by Omid Memarian · comments (0) Donate · Share this: twitter facebook reddit

[foursprout-blog]

Single Women Are Happier Than Society Thinks They Are – According To Research

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/happiness/single-women-are-happier-than-society-thinks-they-are-according-to-research/

Single Women Are Happier Than Society Thinks They Are – According To Research

Ayo Ogunseinde

While it’s wonderful to be in a happy and healthy relationship, the misconception that women who are single cannot thrive or be happy alone is one that needs to be dismantled, pronto. These stigmas only encourage women to get into toxic relationships without taking the time necessary to heal. They place undue pressure on young women to settle just in order to have a partner rather than waiting for one who truly fulfills their needs. They also deter women who are simply happier being single from accepting themselves fully without a sense of guilt or judgment.

Society depicts single women as people who are missing something from their lives. Rarely do single women get the luxury of being seen as freedom-loving, joyful, fulfilled and complex as single men are. Unlike single men who are praised for being lifelong bachelors, single women are usually asked, “Why are you still single?” and instead interrogated about their romantic prospects until the end of time. Their achievements, social networks, passions, hobbies and personalities usually take a backseat to conversations about their relationship status, which is lauded as the end-all, be-all of their lives.

Research, however, suggests that single women are no less fulfilled than those who are coupled. In fact, in some cases, they are happier. Here are the findings:

1. Turns out, single women are happier than they’re stereotyped due to the very nature of what relationships require of them.

Heterosexual single women were found by a new report to be happier than heterosexual single men and were less likely to venture out to find a relationship even while single (Mintel, 2017). The reasons? Despite progress towards equal rights, women still continue to do more emotional labor and domestic labor in relationships. They also tend to have more alternative social networks than men to look towards for support such as healthy friendships.

Being single is less likely to “harm” heterosexual single women in the sense that it might provide some freedom from the emotionally laborious task of being in a relationship – and no matter what, single women know how to utilize their support networks to fulfill their social needs.

2. Single people are more resilient and resourceful due to the fact that they had to be.

This is especially true in terms of how they use their solitude. They are much more confident overall in doing solo activities – which allows them to develop a sense of independence that enriches all facets of their lives.

Since they don’t overly rely on anyone else to get any of their needs met, they have a heightened sense of self-determination and are more likely to experience a sense of continuous growth and self-development. Harvard-trained social psychologist Dr. Bella DePaulo (2013) writes:

“We hear all about how single people are supposedly at risk for becoming lonely, but little about the creative, intellectual, and emotional potential of solitude… We are told that single people do not have the intimacy that married people find in their partners, but hear only crickets about the genuine attachment relationships that single people have with the most important people in their lives.

Missing from the stacks of journal articles is any sustained attention to the risks of intensive coupling—investing all of your emotional and relationship stock into just one person, “The One”—or to the resilience offered by the networks of friends and family that so many single people maintain.”

3. It can be just as healthy to be single – literally.

Single women can be just as psychologically and physically healthy, if not more, than their coupled counterparts. In fact, many of the studies on marriage praising its resulting life satisfaction are biased towards emphasizing those who stayed married, rather than those who later divorced or became widowed. People who stayed married actually only had a slight increase in happiness shortly after marriage due to a “honeymoon effect,” which after a few years reverted back to their original level of happiness before the marriage.

Meanwhile, those who got divorced reported increased life satisfaction after the initial despair (presumably due to their exit and healing from a toxic relationship), though they were not as happy as they were prior to getting married in the first place.

The myth of “marital superiority” is clearly one that looks better on paper than in real life. In general, those who were happiest before they were married remained that way after marriage – which suggests that marriage itself was not the sole conduit for that joy.

“If you are not already a happy person, don’t count on marriage to transform you into one. If you are already happy, don’t expect marriage to make you even happier…finally, if you are single and happy, do not fret that you will descend into despair if you dare to stay single. That’s not likely either.” – Dr. Bella DePaulo, Singled Out, How Singles Are Stereotyped, Stigmatized, Ignored, And Still Live Happily Ever After

In addition, the reported health benefits of marriage that have been lauded are not necessarily due to the marriage itself. DePaulo (2013) points out that marriage gives one access to more than a thousand federal benefits and this advantage leads to better health care. However, research indicates that single women can lead healthy, active lives as well. One Canadian study of more than 11,000 people revealed that lifelong single people had better overall health than married people, while an Australian study of more than 10,000 single women found that they had far less diagnoses of major illnesses, had lower BMIs and were less likely to smoke than married women.

So Now What?

It appears from these findings that it is the social stigma of being single, rather than being single itself that is the problem. Since women are socialized to derive their self-worth from their relationship status, many single women can feel affected by societal pressures and judgment to evaluate and compare their lifestyles to their married friends, coming away feeling ‘less than’ even if they love their careers, are financially abundant, and have thriving social lives. This pressure can be so immense that otherwise happily single people may feel coerced into sustaining toxic partnerships that actually make them unhappier long-term, just to achieve a sense of “normalcy” in their societies.

This is especially true in cultures where young women are pressured to get married and marriage is considered an integral part of their social status. Even if they have nourishing, fulfilling lives, single women may feel that this pressure and judgment detracts from their overall sense of joy. They may feel excluded from events and holidays that extol coupledom, or feel shamed by their peers who perpetuate these pressures. However, as this stigma lessens, the possibility of leading a satisfying life regardless of one’s relationship status becomes that much more powerful and accessible. That’s why it’s so important to continue to dismantle the harmful stereotypes of what it means to be single and celebrate singlehood just as much as we celebrate marriage.

Regardless of whether or not someone plans to have a serious relationship in the future, the fact of the matter is, a period of singlehood can be a fruitful time for anyone no matter what their gender. Singlehood is a life-saver in that it grants individuals the creative space to develop their dreams, to explore the world and to build their identity without the interference of another person – something they may not be able to do without as much duress if they do choose to be in a relationship in the future. The ability to be successful, independent and joyful no matter what your relationship status is should be seen as a gift and an asset, not a curse.

Read more of Shahida Arabi’s articles here.

References

DePaulo, B. (2013, May 08). Are Single People Mentally Stronger? Retrieved August 27, 2017.

DePaulo, B. M. (2007). Singled out: How singles are stereotyped, stigmatized, and ignored and still live happily ever after. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin.

Girme, Y. U., Overall, N. C., Faingataa, S., & Sibley, C. G. (2015). Happily Single. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 7(2), 122-130. doi:10.1177/1948550615599828

Luhmann, M., Hofmann, W., Eid, M., & Lucas, R. (2011). Supplemental Material for Subjective Well-Being and Adaptation to Life Events: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. doi:10.1037/a0025948.supp

Mintel (2017). Single Lifestyles UK – consumer market research report (Rep.). Retrieved here.

[foursprouthappiness-blog]

Single Women Are Happier Than Society Thinks They Are – According To Research

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/happiness/single-women-are-happier-than-society-thinks-they-are-according-to-research/

Single Women Are Happier Than Society Thinks They Are – According To Research

Ayo Ogunseinde

While it’s wonderful to be in a happy and healthy relationship, the misconception that women who are single cannot thrive or be happy alone is one that needs to be dismantled, pronto. These stigmas only encourage women to get into toxic relationships without taking the time necessary to heal. They place undue pressure on young women to settle just in order to have a partner rather than waiting for one who truly fulfills their needs. They also deter women who are simply happier being single from accepting themselves fully without a sense of guilt or judgment.

Society depicts single women as people who are missing something from their lives. Rarely do single women get the luxury of being seen as freedom-loving, joyful, fulfilled and complex as single men are. Unlike single men who are praised for being lifelong bachelors, single women are usually asked, “Why are you still single?” and instead interrogated about their romantic prospects until the end of time. Their achievements, social networks, passions, hobbies and personalities usually take a backseat to conversations about their relationship status, which is lauded as the end-all, be-all of their lives.

Research, however, suggests that single women are no less fulfilled than those who are coupled. In fact, in some cases, they are happier. Here are the findings:

1. Turns out, single women are happier than they’re stereotyped due to the very nature of what relationships require of them.

Heterosexual single women were found by a new report to be happier than heterosexual single men and were less likely to venture out to find a relationship even while single (Mintel, 2017). The reasons? Despite progress towards equal rights, women still continue to do more emotional labor and domestic labor in relationships. They also tend to have more alternative social networks than men to look towards for support such as healthy friendships.

Being single is less likely to “harm” heterosexual single women in the sense that it might provide some freedom from the emotionally laborious task of being in a relationship – and no matter what, single women know how to utilize their support networks to fulfill their social needs.

2. Single people are more resilient and resourceful due to the fact that they had to be.

This is especially true in terms of how they use their solitude. They are much more confident overall in doing solo activities – which allows them to develop a sense of independence that enriches all facets of their lives.

Since they don’t overly rely on anyone else to get any of their needs met, they have a heightened sense of self-determination and are more likely to experience a sense of continuous growth and self-development. Harvard-trained social psychologist Dr. Bella DePaulo (2013) writes:

“We hear all about how single people are supposedly at risk for becoming lonely, but little about the creative, intellectual, and emotional potential of solitude… We are told that single people do not have the intimacy that married people find in their partners, but hear only crickets about the genuine attachment relationships that single people have with the most important people in their lives.

Missing from the stacks of journal articles is any sustained attention to the risks of intensive coupling—investing all of your emotional and relationship stock into just one person, “The One”—or to the resilience offered by the networks of friends and family that so many single people maintain.”

3. It can be just as healthy to be single – literally.

Single women can be just as psychologically and physically healthy, if not more, than their coupled counterparts. In fact, many of the studies on marriage praising its resulting life satisfaction are biased towards emphasizing those who stayed married, rather than those who later divorced or became widowed. People who stayed married actually only had a slight increase in happiness shortly after marriage due to a “honeymoon effect,” which after a few years reverted back to their original level of happiness before the marriage.

Meanwhile, those who got divorced reported increased life satisfaction after the initial despair (presumably due to their exit and healing from a toxic relationship), though they were not as happy as they were prior to getting married in the first place.

The myth of “marital superiority” is clearly one that looks better on paper than in real life. In general, those who were happiest before they were married remained that way after marriage – which suggests that marriage itself was not the sole conduit for that joy.

“If you are not already a happy person, don’t count on marriage to transform you into one. If you are already happy, don’t expect marriage to make you even happier…finally, if you are single and happy, do not fret that you will descend into despair if you dare to stay single. That’s not likely either.” – Dr. Bella DePaulo, Singled Out, How Singles Are Stereotyped, Stigmatized, Ignored, And Still Live Happily Ever After

In addition, the reported health benefits of marriage that have been lauded are not necessarily due to the marriage itself. DePaulo (2013) points out that marriage gives one access to more than a thousand federal benefits and this advantage leads to better health care. However, research indicates that single women can lead healthy, active lives as well. One Canadian study of more than 11,000 people revealed that lifelong single people had better overall health than married people, while an Australian study of more than 10,000 single women found that they had far less diagnoses of major illnesses, had lower BMIs and were less likely to smoke than married women.

So Now What?

It appears from these findings that it is the social stigma of being single, rather than being single itself that is the problem. Since women are socialized to derive their self-worth from their relationship status, many single women can feel affected by societal pressures and judgment to evaluate and compare their lifestyles to their married friends, coming away feeling ‘less than’ even if they love their careers, are financially abundant, and have thriving social lives. This pressure can be so immense that otherwise happily single people may feel coerced into sustaining toxic partnerships that actually make them unhappier long-term, just to achieve a sense of “normalcy” in their societies.

This is especially true in cultures where young women are pressured to get married and marriage is considered an integral part of their social status. Even if they have nourishing, fulfilling lives, single women may feel that this pressure and judgment detracts from their overall sense of joy. They may feel excluded from events and holidays that extol coupledom, or feel shamed by their peers who perpetuate these pressures. However, as this stigma lessens, the possibility of leading a satisfying life regardless of one’s relationship status becomes that much more powerful and accessible. That’s why it’s so important to continue to dismantle the harmful stereotypes of what it means to be single and celebrate singlehood just as much as we celebrate marriage.

Regardless of whether or not someone plans to have a serious relationship in the future, the fact of the matter is, a period of singlehood can be a fruitful time for anyone no matter what their gender. Singlehood is a life-saver in that it grants individuals the creative space to develop their dreams, to explore the world and to build their identity without the interference of another person – something they may not be able to do without as much duress if they do choose to be in a relationship in the future. The ability to be successful, independent and joyful no matter what your relationship status is should be seen as a gift and an asset, not a curse.

Read more of Shahida Arabi’s articles here.

References

DePaulo, B. (2013, May 08). Are Single People Mentally Stronger? Retrieved August 27, 2017.

DePaulo, B. M. (2007). Singled out: How singles are stereotyped, stigmatized, and ignored and still live happily ever after. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin.

Girme, Y. U., Overall, N. C., Faingataa, S., & Sibley, C. G. (2015). Happily Single. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 7(2), 122-130. doi:10.1177/1948550615599828

Luhmann, M., Hofmann, W., Eid, M., & Lucas, R. (2011). Supplemental Material for Subjective Well-Being and Adaptation to Life Events: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. doi:10.1037/a0025948.supp

Mintel (2017). Single Lifestyles UK – consumer market research report (Rep.). Retrieved here.

[vileart]

What If Dramaturgy Told You: Pauline Mayers

Northern Stage at Summerhall 2017, The Mayers Ensemble (UK) and West Yorkshire Playhouse present  WHAT IF I TOLD YOU Theatre/dance crossover explores personal boundaries and histories, directed by multi Fringe First winner Chris Goode Fringe first-timer Pauline Mayers is used to people making assumptions about her based on her gender, background and skin colour; it’s been happening all of her life. But she’s defied those expectations at every turn, tearing up the narrative that society tried to impose on her. Last year Pauline hit a crisis point. Perhaps not that unusual for a woman in her mid 40s, but a pretty big deal when it happens to you. She didn't know where her life was taking her, had no sense of where she’d come from. She was at a crossroads but couldn’t see where the routes led. So she looked back thorough her life and thought about how her experiences may relate to others. Listings informationVenue: Army@The Fringe in association with Summerhall, Venue 210   Dates: 11-26 Aug (not 14, 21) Time: 17.00 (60 mins + 60 mins Koan: What If You Told Us) Tickets: £12, £10 (preview 11 Aug £8, £6)    

Venue Box Office: 0131 560 1581  www.summerhall.co.uk 

What was the inspiration for this performance?

There wasn’t a point of inspiration. Actually, around the time of making the show, I hit a moment of great uncertainty and apathy. Although I’ve been involved in the arts for many years, as a dancer and choreographer for dance and theatre companies across the UK, I felt I had nothing to show for it. I was unemployed, hitting my forties and I literally didn’t know where my life was going. The constant feast and famine nature of what I was doing had finally taken its toll and I wanted out. I was also tired of the way people appeared to judge me and what I do based seemingly on my appearance rather than my experience or talent.

Being a highly trained professional performance maker with over 25 years of experience who happens to be a woman with black skin, I felt, more often than not, that I was seen as someone who followed others rather than a person more than capable of leading a team of artists to create shows for both the public and fellow peers alike.

I initially trained as a dancer at the Rambert School in London, taught at the Royal Ballet School, danced for several high profile dance companies, created whole dance shows in community outreach programmes, taught and ran my own dance and theatre residencies, danced internationally, I could go on. Yet somehow the idea of me being a choreographer and theatre maker wasn’t quite believed.

This has been the case throughout my entire career. In fact, when I first expressed the thought of being a dancer at the age of thirteen, my school teachers sought to dissuade me from doing so saying that the profession wasn’t for me and instead sought to encourage me to be a secretary instead - which I ignored!

Looking back over my time in the arts, I realised I was spending a lot of my time having to explain and defend who I am and what I do and although my work was very much in the public arena, somehow I wasn’t. I was tired of having to seemingly justify my very existence in the performance arts world. So, I decided to retrain as a counsellor.

I took an introduction to counselling course with the intention of completing my training within five years. What If I Told You (WIITY) is a way of expressing my frustrations at being judged by my appearance. I feel judgments are being made subconsciously all the time and it’s causing nothing but fear and anger across the UK and has done across the decades. But the question is, where has this idea of judgement based on skin colour come from?

WIITY seeks to interrupt this antagonistic way of being by creating time and opening up a space which enables audiences to listen and reflect on why this keeps happening. It was also meant to be my final hurrah, a way of saying goodbye to the arts world, and leave with some sort of legacy to say I was here and I contributed.

However, since it’s initial conception, it’s become like my calling card, a stated intention that I will continue to make work as the Mayers Ensemble. It’s become a reminder that there will be high and lows and that is just the nature of the arts. What I must do is to focus on the work I want to make. Ultimately, the arts is literally in my DNA, I can’t help but to continue.

Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas? 

Absolutely! Until technology came along, public discussion was exactly how human beings exchanged ideas.

The Silk Road, a main trading route from the African continent through to China and Japan was also where ideas of art, culture, religion and spirituality, maths and language were being exchanged through public discussions. This way of introducing and interrogating ideas has been slowly eroded over the centuries.

What performance can do is introduce its audience to different ways of thinking, creating both time and a space to reflect and, if encouraged, to discuss what people may be thinking or feeling in response to what they have seen. Having some counselling skills and knowing that some of the content of the show is harrowing and uncomfortable, What If I Told You has a second half called Koan which is a Japanese word with one definition being “public thought” and it’s exactly that. Led by the brilliant poet and activist Khadijah Ibrahiim, it’s a space where the audience has the opportunity to discuss some of the themes of the show in a safe space, where what happens in the room stays in the room and won’t be expressed elsewhere.

How did you become interested in making performance?

I’m intrigued by hearing voices and seeing stories that I wouldn’t usually see or hear. I’m interested in giving voice to those who may not otherwise be heard. My own struggles of making myself heard has led me to give space to others who may be experiencing similar things. A lot of my earlier collaborations gave voice to exactly these kinds of stories.

For example, ‘Promised Land’ with Red Ladder Theatre was the story of Leeds and its football club told through the eyes of the Jewish community, ‘Burmantoft Stories, an outdoor, site specific show I directed for the West Yorkshire Playhouse, asked audiences see the vibrancy and beauty of the Burmantofts area of Leeds by shining a light on the stories of the talented individuals who live in the community. Burmantofts had been dismissed as an area of high crime and unemployment when in fact it was no different to any other inner city area. Indeed Hackney, where I’m from was also seen as such and that demonisation can have a demoralising effect on the communities that live and work there. It’s the unveiling of different ways of expressing the human condition that I’m curious about.

Is there any particular approach to the making of the show?

To be honest, the only approach I took was to enable audiences to walk with me in my world, to feel a little of the everyday struggle I have to contend with, and to finally own my story and express it in the way I want to express it.

Does the show fit with your usual productions?

Not at all. In fact it’s a major departure from anything I’ve done before. WIITY is conceptualised, written and performed by me. It’s the first time I’ve written a solo show and I worked with theatre maker Chris Goode as director, someone I both trust wholeheartedly and enjoy making work with.

I joined Chris Goode and Company as a collaborator initially and we’ve worked together on many projects over the years. It’s also the first time I’ve used performance to find the intersection between theatre and dance, and how to interact with face to face with audiences.

What do you hope that the audience will experience?

I hope audiences will experience something they will never forget. And I hope my show is a catalyst for a small shift in how people think about skin colour prejudice and that they begin to be open to seeing skin colour prejudice as a ideology that should remain in the past.

What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?

The only strategy I considered was to enable the audience to feel some of what I’ve felt, to spend some time in my shoes.

What if I Told You is Pauline’s way of telling her (his)tory as a black woman, a dancer and choreographer. It’s a story of universal truths and contradictions that we can all relate to. She invites her audience to spend an hour playing together to challenge boundaries, personal histories, gender and skin colour, carefully balancing dance and theatre and dispensing with traditional barriers between performer and audiences.Along the way the story of James Sims, cited by some as the ‘father of modern gynaecology’, weaves through Pauline’s own. Sims bought then operated on, black female slaves, without anaesthetic, believing that black bodies didn’t suffer pain in the way white bodies do. Many of Sims’ methods and discoveries are still used today.‘A thought-provoking and powerful piece of work’ The Culture VultureIn the second part of the show, Koan: What If You Told Us the audience is invited by poet, playwright and activist Khadijah Ibrahiim to share thoughts and ideas inspired by the show.What If I Told You is written and performed by Pauline Mayers and directed by Chris Goode. It was developed at West Yorkshire Playhouse and is a co-production by The Mayers Ensemble and West Yorkshire Playhouse.The show is performed at Summerhall’s newest space, The Army Reserve Centre on East Claremont Street EH7 4HU. Pauline Mayers trained at the Rambert School and is a theatremaker, choreographer and dancer. She has performed in contemporary dance companies and taught choreographers across the UK and internationally including Janet Smith & Dancers, Diversions Dance, Phoenix Dance Company and The Ensemble Group. She has also worked with theatre companies such as Tell Tale Hearts and Red Ladder.Chris Goode is a writer, director and performer described as ‘one of the most exciting talents working in Britain today’ (Guardian). His work includes four Fringe First award- winning shows: Neutrino (with Unlimited Theatre), Kiss of Life, Monkey Bars (Traverse) and Men in the Cities (Royal Court and Traverse).

Venue: Army@The Fringe in association with Summerhall, Venue 210   

Dates: 11-26 Aug (not 14, 21)

Time: 17.00 (60 mins + 60 mins Koan: What If You Told Us)

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