Genderfication

9/13/2018

9/28/2018 03:39:47 pm

I attended the talk last night and... what to say.... thank you! It was fun, it was confronting, it was a learning experience for me. I am 'working/playing' with gender since 2008 (back in Italy - where I grew up - and then here in Sydney). I am a performer, a 'gender fluid drag queen', and I LOVED your work. It was interesting seeing so many different genders and artists, and what a great audience too! I felt at home.
The talk was very interesting and had my friends and I talking about it on our way home. I like the way you challenged labels, duality, gender, sex, perception, and I am thankful you gave us a safe space to talk about it with others. I understand you had a schedule and we all had to leave the venue by a certain time, but I would have loved to have more time at the end to talk, discuss, debrief.
Once again, thank you for an incredible experience and... see you next time!!

Miss Understood

Suzy Goes See | Suzy Wrong

9/28/2018 10:01:14 pm

An ancient text from the Jacobean era is presented seven times, in vastly different ways, with Dr. Jessica Kean appearing like a master of ceremonies in between to facilitate discussions around the gender that we had observed each time. Although not always obvious, the performers in separate instalments have something individual to say about identity, and we are encouraged to consider the phenomenon of gender as a kind of social exchange, involving not only interpretation but also intent. Genderification is an exercise in respect, of understanding the boundaries between what we think to be female and male, and the infinite ways that each person might conceive of themself in those gendered terms.

These are sophisticated ideas, embodied by all the actors who bring fascinating dimensions to the overarching discussion. Performer Sophie Kelly’s bold approach makes a sensational statement about femininity, within oscillating contexts of time and class, to confront our petty bourgeois attitudes. Ladonna Rama extends reflections to something futuristic, almost post-human in their rendering of a theme that is often too binary in our estimations. Not everything is dealt with a satisfactory level of rigour in Genderification, but we certainly do encounter important questions that seek to broaden our minds, and expand our hearts.

It might be easy to imagine a world without gender, and hold dear those ideals, but to navigate real life, we require daily strategies, both conscious and unconscious. We have to deal with prejudice, with how others react to the self, based on shorthand information that can only ever be cosmetic and shallow. Sexism wants us to attribute to people, qualities that are ultimately unjust and erroneous; strong or weak, good or bad, respectable or shameful, these presumptions that force people into categories that will enable an oppression that is ultimately of benefit to no one. To debunk gender, is to help us be rid of that sexism, but in the meantime, we can all be wiser, and kinder, in how we treat each gendered subject.

Saffron Moss

9/30/2018 12:37:04 pm

Genderfication was a wonderful experience that I probably wouldn't have even heard of if my friend wasn't performing in it. The diversity of performance in Sydney always delights and astounds me.

The use of Jacobean (I had to look up that Jacobean means late 1500s to early 1600s England + Scotland) text mixed into a contemporary setting, acknowledging the point of the performance as an experiment of gender, made me think not only about how we see and perform gender for others, something I've thought about extensively, but also about my own creative practice.

Recently, I have been performing a scene from Away by Michael Gow and I can already see the ways that this show has made me think about the character I'm playing. Even more recently, I have performed a monologue about coming of age and coming out and the extra thought about gender really drove home some of the feelings I was trying to express in the piece.

The discussion with people who were all generally accepting, but with different levels of understanding about gender, allowed me to see the experience of both cis and other trans people in a completely new way that has bolstered my own thoughts and views.

All of the performers were amazing, completely committed to the performance. The discussion brought out by each individual is a testament to the talent and practice that each respective performer put into their own monologue.

I left the library thinking, "I wish I could see that again. I wish I could go back and be a part of it." The experiment was confronting and thought-provoking, everything I was hoping it would be. I can't wait for whatever comes next!

Thank you to all the performers and all people involved for the great night shared by all!

Peace Peter

10/9/2018 07:48:42 pm

I walked in not even considering the difference between GENDER and SEX. If this was the only revelation I'd had then I would have been deeply satisfied with this potent uncovery of my ignorance. I found myself dreaming of a very different world where people meet via heart and not genitalia.
Curly Fernandez is eximious! A rarity in monotonous ydney....

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Genderfication

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