Mikrofest VI

The audience piles in to a dimly lit basement. They come across a dingy complitation of objects, bodies, and sounds. Occupying one corner of the basement is a business man, face painted white, arm tangled in a ladder, which leans against his back at a 60 degree angle. He holds a pose and remains motionless. In front of him on the floor is a small boombox, which is playing a tape recording of 2 vocalists throat singing. To the side of him stands an empty children's school desk. Behind: a heap of cardboard with a pair of army boots jutting out from underneath. The audience stares on patiently for something to occur, some sort of action to take place. A minute or two passes, still nothing happens. The recording continues to play. The aduience is quiet, and really quite observant. A few people whisper to each other: "what do you think is going to happen?" "How long can he hold that pose?" 5 minutes pass, the performer's legs begin to tremble, he carefully shifts his weight in minute movents--tension is high. Just then a noise is heard from another dark corner of the basement. It is coming from the dryer. The door of the dryer flies open. a leg emerges. Then another. Slowly, the body of another business man births itself out of the machine. It begins to move in large, quick sporadic movements. It seems to be occupied with trying to pick up a briefcase that has been found on the floor. Both the business man and the briefcase commence across the basement towards the empty desk. On the way, bumping into everything and everyone in every direction. He finally makes it to the desk. In one sweeping motion he bends down towards the breifcase, hooks it with his numb hands, and hurls it atop the desk. Just as the briefcase collides with the desktop the business man with the ladder is startled awake into motion. In the same stiff and sporadic movents as the other performer, he wrestles with the six-foot aluminum ladder, trying to free his arm from its grasp. The audience watches on in awe and confusion, and also fear that this ladder may lose control and come flying out towards them. They shift their attention back towards the other performer, who by now has pryed the briefcase open and is hurling out from it large plumes of white printer paper. The other businessman has set up the ladder and begins his ascent. He struggles with this task, repeatedly bumbing into and falling off of the ladder. The white clouds of paper turn into plumes of of red. The man makes it to the top of the ladder and tries all his might to continue through the ceiling. The red paper plumes decease, the floor now littered with white and red printer paper, and the man with the briefcase brings his hand up from the case to reaveal a red viscous liquid coving his hands. He flings this about, startled by his discovery. A glob of this comes in contact with the man on the ladder, which sends him down the ladder to investigate. He pushes the other man aside and dips his hand into the briefcase pulling up the same red matter. He slaps this hand against the other man's face, leaving a streak of red across it. The man falls to the ground dead. The man from the ladder is left to himself, and begins to ingest the red substance. He chokes, traverses across stage, bumping into the ladder, and falling to the floor, where he convulses until he dies. Stillness sets in, the recording on the tape sets and eerie tone. Just then something begins to stir from under the mound of cardboard. Out from underneath emerges a homeless man, waking up to find this strange inncident on his front porch. He goes over to the bodies and checks their vitals with the heel of his boot. He quickly begins to scavange. he rumages through their pockets, for money, jewrely and smokes. He rolls one of the bodies over, removes its jacket and puts it on. He then looks straight out at the audience, walks right up in front and opens his mouth. He does this, and a current of yellow corn kernels pour from his mouth. He picks up the boombox and walks out of the basement. The End.


Here are some pictues taken by David Dec during the performance. It was very low lighting and only a few pictues came out visable. Performers: Ian Picco, Jamie Pittman, Michah. Photographer: David Dec

Setting the Stage






The Opening Pose




The Audience




Ascent up the Ladder



Blood on the Hands




Long Exposure: Homeless Man Rumages



Littered Floor



Here are some short 15 second video clips captured from David's digital camera. They don't show much, the lighting is dark, and Dave's hand goes all over the place. But you can catch glimpses of things, and at the very least you can hear samples of the vocal recording made by Michah and myself.











I will be posting the full audio recording in 2 parts sometime in the next few days.