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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 3, 2004)
21 Instead, Jasperse s piece reaches into the ing to Remdsch. broader realm of politics in what Boberg calls Or something like that. “a very abstract and sophisticated way.” She says California “is sort of about the elections in Maricich says the Remdsch phi California, the dot com bust and how things can seem utopic or fantastic—like the Gold losophy is that Rush, or San Francisco as a gay mecca—and “when people then how things pop and go away.” start to have men tal problems, it All of this content is not necessarily imme goes along with diately apparent. And one need not work to decipher a hidden meaning behind the chore them falling out of the rhythms of ography. The dance is compelling enough sim the way they usu ply for its craft. ally behave.” Boberg says, “If Jasperse didn’t mention Cali Maricich con fornia, you would probably...just say, ‘Wow, this is an amazing abstract study about people’s relation tinues: “The way that a person usu ship to space and the set and.. .to each other.’ ” ally behaves is like a net—a sys tem for making all the choices like: ortland artist David Eckard will also be ‘Who ami?’ exploring politics and big ideas for the Erin Boberg is the happening assistant curator of performing arts at PICA TBA Festival. Just don’t expect his ‘What do I do?’ ‘How do 1 talk?’ pontifications to make sense. ‘How do I move?’ ‘How do 1 dress?’ ” Eckard’s sculptural-based performance, Podi Maricich says the net is formed depending ake, for instance, 29-year-old musician upon the people whom one is surrounded by in and performer Khaela Maricich, who childhixxl and throughout life. When someone recently moved to Portland from starts to go crazy, the net begins to fray. Speech Olympia, Wash. She is, in her words, “dating a patterns change and become garbled. girl right now”—her first. Her performance for the “It’s like if you have a route you walk in festival will not, however, be an ode to the new your life and you accidentally wander off that found wonders of Sapphic love (nor to the hard route,” she says. ships of coming out). She taps into a more univer The daily karaoke song and dance is sal quandary by exploring issues of identity and designed to “keep you in the rhythm so you mental health in relation to corporate culture. don’t have to wander off.” Maricich is perhaps best known in the It is of note that Maricich is in residency at region as the one-woman band The Blow. She Wieden+Kennedy, which also houses PICA. says a typical Blow show is of a pop tune nature, Her studio locale gives her a bird’s-eye view of with the youthful, unadorned Maricich singing corporate culture—albeit a creative and un karaoke-style to prerecorded tunes by herself usual corporate setting. She says The Touch Me and collaborators. Her breathy, conspiratorial Feeling “has a lot to do with studying people voice has been described as “postcoital,” like a and how people manage to live in the world.” lover murmuring stories in the wee hours. Presumably Wieden+Kennedy employees are For the festival, she will present both a large- some of her objects of observation. scale performance as well as a Blow concert at the after-hours TBA club, Machineworks. The main stage performance, The Touch Me Feeling, is a multimedia presentation in which Maricich acts as a presenter for a company called oberg says we can expect to see more work Remdsch. She will lead a demonstration of in contemporary performance that, like Remdsch’s new mental health care system for Maricich's, explores identity in relation to keeping on track in an ever-distracting world. business and corporate culture. Maricich won’t say if Remdsch is real or “There has been a shift to kxiking at the larger fabricated. Her stage presentation will involve systems," says the 32-year-old of the move away a live Web conference with Remdsch “employ from queer-content-only performances. She men ees”—or are they actors? The demonstration tions choreographer John Jasperse, whose dance includes the key component of the Remdsch company is featured in the TBA Festival. Jasperse, system: karaoke dance routines. who is gay and lives in New York City, has created That’s right. Acting out your own little a dance titled California that deals neither with his Richard Move strikes a pose as Martha® superstar fantasies can keep you sane, accord sexual identity nor his hometown, per se. Mi Help is on the way? P Blow your mind um, will take place over the course of 10 days during which Eckard will “work” eight-hour shifts. His job? To push around a wheeled con traption of his own making that he will period ically assemble into a mini podium, complete with bullhorn. Clad in a generic uniform, Eckard will then transform himself from manu al laborer into personage of importance: He will climb up on the podium and orate. Eckard says his monologue will contain familiar “speechisms" without any particular political stance or content. He says his speech will be “personal but cloaked in pub lic mannerisms." For example, listeners may hear him say: “My pilgrimage ends at the first step because 1 unable to build on your common ground.” Huh? The familiar oration style minus the famil iar oration content will invite audiences to take a lœk at “how they knit together their own meaning out of something,” says Eckard. He expects that seeing someone up on a Continued on Page 23 T California dreamin' B J&xv extraordinary flora ATTENTION! Relief & Recovery • GAY, LESBIAN, Bl, TRANS FRIENDLV • COMPANY RETIREES • CURRENT EMPLOYEES Feel Better in an I lour! From Car Accident Injuries Chronic Pain Medical • Dental • Rx - *109.95/ mo. ENTIRE FAMILY! 1019 nw 11th ave p 503.228.2558 Gentle Chiropractic Care & Massage 3703 SE 39th Avenue AU Pro-Existing Conditions Okay Located at 39th & Powell We Handle Insurance Billing CALL 1-800-228-0305 503-659-2844 zazw www.Dharma-Rain.Org
