Terms and Conditions Apply (2020)

A space is given terms and conditions and that develops into a constructed culture. The

performing bodies embody as well as attempt to resist this culture. These choices are

visibilized through their actions. The viewers are also invited into this space through a

contract.

The body is considered to be at the centre of this culture. The body archives, absorbs and

embodies this cultural behaviour as well as defies it. How is the space weaved? What are its

inherent qualities? What occurs in a space when bodies defy the fabrications of the space?

Can the threads be pulled apart? The work looks at what materializes in an opposing body.

These bodies protest but also submit, accept and yield. The autonomy of the viewing body

and the performing body are in conflict here. The space construes the codes of performance

and displaces the position of the viewer. It forms a dangerous, unstable space with an

unpredictable urgency. The intention is to challenge the viewing body to become another

performing body. They must participate (willingly or unwillingly) to reassert their status as

the viewer.

The work attempts to use the simple structure of a game that invites both the viewers and the performers to blur the lines between play and performance. Imagine an enclosed space in which there are codes of behavior and conduct. What starts to occur when some bodies start to defy the rules of a codified space? And what happens when some bodies do not wish defy the rules? Does anybody ever just ‘witness’? Does the act of witnessing translate into another act of obedience? What prompts people to obey or disobey?

The work was recently (January 2023) re-imagined in the city of Kolkata with the support of Pickle Factory Dance Foundation.

Performers: Jasmine Yadav, Manju Sharma, Dennis Barwa and Aseng Borang Choreographer: Aseng Borang