March 4, 2022 | LIFE | By Mahnoor Rehman
Disclaimer: The author is affiliated with this production.
First week of Block six contained the world premiere of the theatre multimedia show “Boy mother / faceless bloom” at Colorado College. With inspiring artists from all over the country and a compelling team composed of professionals and students at CC, the interdisciplinary performance left its audience imagining a transformative future.
The group of artists that initiated and performed “Boy mother / faceless bloom” is called Juni One Set. The members of the group include Senga Nengudi, Eddy Kwon, and Degenerate Art Ensemble’s Crow Nishimura and Joshua Kohl. All except Sanga are from outside of Colorado. Each individual creates and composes different forms of art, theatre, music and dance in the U.S.
The members of Juni One Set, who have been working on this project for last three years, were finally able to perform their intricate and mesmerizing theatre production, art piece, and sculpture installation.
“Boy mother/ faceless bloom” is a performance that involves multiple genres of theatre and focuses on sculptural installations to create an experimental piece. Alongside this, the show utilizes original live and prerecorded audio and music throughout its duration.
Movement is incorporated through experimental dance, which creates a captivating impact on the audience. There are also scenes that involve audience interaction, adding to the theatric experience. The majority of the movements are based on embodied narratives, a concept which in itself creates space for a story to be told.
The performance is inspired by the combined, personal mythologies of Nengudi, Kwon, Nishimura, and Kohl. The interpretations of the performance explore identities of transgender people and the process of transition while also contemplating ancestry and motherhood. Significantly, it dives into the conversations and critiques surrounding ideologies of imperialism and colonialism, ones that have existed throughout the history of the world.
The Office of Performing Arts and Creativity & Innovation at Colorado College, the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College, the Colorado College Theater/Dance Department, and the Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center have supported this project for the last three years. During the pandemic, their assistance was especially vital. The project required virtual support to keep the creativity flowing in order to produce a final performance.
As a member of the crew for the tech team of this project, I am extremely grateful and honored to have worked with such a talented, powerful and also deeply humble group of artists who are continuously imagining and fabricating such necessary embodied work. Throughout the process, the constant appreciation of one another and collaborative work resulted in a sensational show.
The showing lasted from Feb. 24 to Feb. 27. It had a serious turnout each day. Faculty, staff and students alongside local Colorado residents showed up to watch the production live and appreciate the art forms exhibited by the performers.