News/Research

Poetics of Space - how a performance becomes a personal encounter

14 Sep, 2015

Poetics of Space - how a performance becomes a personal encounter

After a sabbatical wherein he was awarded $32,000 to research genealogies of Argentinean performance, Professor Joe Goode of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies has started upon a new project - Poetics of Space. Goode is known for blurring lines between text and movement; now he's interested in the proximities of the performers and the audience - where a performance takes place as well as how it's made. Inspired from French philosopher Gaston Bachelard's book called Poetics of Space, Goode started considering how our environment affects us - how we'll always recall the places where we've had our greatest and worst moments. Goode strays from Bachelard's book by depicting situations both personal and unexpected, an experience the audience will be able to actively partake in, as they are meant to stray from their seats. Noting how people tend to "shop" whilst at a museum, Goode alongside Sean Riley constructed a set that will allow for the audience members to leave feeling like they absorbed the full experience of the performance. Goode foresees the performance affecting different people in different manners, as they will observe a mapping of a life, and the interplay of complex and personal territory. Goode has done extensive research on complex and personal territory, which has allowed him to become thoroughly transformed by experiences like the Resilience Project, an initiative to bring Goode and his company together with returning veterans fro Iraq and Afghanistan. This one project has allowed Goode to interact with numerous communities across the country, making connections and forging relationships. Goode's projects have allowed for understanding of the places we inhabit, our ever-changing lives, and the risk of intimacy.

Performances of Poetics of Space will occur over the span of three weeks - September 25th to October 11th.

Read more on Prof. Goode's upcoming performance here!