Our Other Body
Created by Boaz Barkan
Performed by Boaz Barkan and Joel Degerfeldt
Dramatic consultation by Daniel Norback
Supported by the Danish Arts Counsel
Link to full performance on Vimeo:
https://vimeo.com/285725362
Our Other Body, is a performance that examines internalized racism, the effects of racism on our body and the way identity inhabits the body.
In the performance I explores how these forces are embodied in us. I use a living naked corpse as a theater for an intimate, playful and sincere discourse about these critical influences in our life. It is a performative anatomical description of a hidden organ, an organ which stores racist ideas and influences the function and image of our own body.
In particular I discuss the Jewish identity and the effects racism has had on the embodiment of the 'Jewish Body' vs. the 'Zionist Body', oppressed vs. oppressor.
In the performance, I draw parallels between the history of my Jewish-German family before the WW2, and the life of Muslim-Danish communities today. I make the point that living within the white Danish context has an effect on our embodiment and should be discussed more openly.
The performance was well received and will be presented as part of the CPH Stage program. And I am working on presenting it in other contexts in Denmark.
DURATION 45 Min.
Premiered at The Danish Medicine Museum and Faar302, Copenhagen Dec. 2017