9.3 Queer performance art and theater

Queer performance art and theater challenge societal norms through drag, cabaret, and subversive acts. These forms of expression use humor, shock, and gender-bending to question assumptions about identity and sexuality.

Performers embody queer theory concepts like performativity and intersectionality on stage. This artistic movement has a rich history, from ancient times to post-Stonewall, and continues to push boundaries in contemporary theater.

Queer Performance Styles

Drag as an Art Form

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Top images from around the web for Drag as an Art Form

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  The Second Skin | Southeast Asian Queer Cultural Festival View original

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• Drag performance involves performers dressing and acting as a different gender, often in an exaggerated or theatrical manner (drag queens, drag kings)
• Drag challenges traditional gender norms and expectations through the use of makeup, costumes, and performance
• Drag performances often incorporate elements of comedy, lip-syncing, and dance
• Drag has a long history in queer communities as a form of self-expression and resistance against societal norms

Cabaret and Gender-Bending Theater

• Queer cabaret is a form of entertainment that often features a variety of acts, such as music, comedy, and burlesque, performed by LGBTQ+ artists
• Cabaret performances often challenge societal norms and expectations surrounding gender and sexuality through subversive humor and provocative content
• Gender bending in theater involves actors portraying characters of a different gender or playing with gender roles and expectations within a performance (cross-dressing, androgynous characters)
• Gender-bending performances can challenge audiences to question their assumptions about gender and explore the fluidity of gender identity

Subversive Performance Art

• Subversive performance art aims to challenge and disrupt dominant cultural narratives and power structures
• Queer performance artists often use their work to critique heteronormativity, cisnormativity, and other forms of oppression
• Subversive performances may incorporate elements of shock, transgression, and confrontation to provoke audiences and spark critical reflection
• Examples of subversive queer performance art include works by artists such as Ron Athey, Vaginal Davis, and Leigh Bowery

Queer Theory in Performance

Performativity and Queer Embodiment

• Performativity, as theorized by Judith Butler, suggests that gender is not an inherent identity but rather a series of repeated acts and performances
• Queer performances can explore the performative nature of gender by highlighting the constructed and fluid nature of gender identity
• Queer embodiment in performance refers to the ways in which LGBTQ+ performers use their bodies to challenge normative ideas about gender, sexuality, and desire
• Performances that explore queer embodiment may involve non-normative or transgressive uses of the body, such as in the works of artists like Cassils and boychild

Temporality and Intersectionality in Queer Performance

• Queer temporality in performance explores the ways in which queer lives and experiences challenge linear and normative conceptions of time (non-linear narratives, anachronisms)
• Performances that engage with queer temporality may disrupt traditional narrative structures and explore alternative ways of experiencing and understanding time
• Intersectionality in queer theater acknowledges the multiple and overlapping identities that shape the experiences of LGBTQ+ individuals (race, class, disability, etc.)
• Queer performances that incorporate an intersectional lens may explore the ways in which different forms of oppression and marginalization intersect and impact queer lives

Queer Theater History and Reception

LGBTQ+ Theater History

• LGBTQ+ theater has a long and rich history, with roots in ancient Greek and Roman theater, Shakespearean cross-dressing, and early 20th-century gay and lesbian theater groups
• The Stonewall Riots of 1969 marked a turning point in LGBTQ+ theater, leading to an explosion of queer-themed plays and performances in the 1970s and 1980s
• Notable figures in LGBTQ+ theater history include playwrights such as Tennessee Williams, Tony Kushner, and Paula Vogel, as well as theater companies like the The Cockettes and Bloolips
• Contemporary queer theater continues to push boundaries and explore new forms of representation, with works by playwrights like Taylor Mac, Young Jean Lee, and Jordan Tannahill

Queer Spectatorship and Audience Reception

• Queer spectatorship refers to the ways in which LGBTQ+ audiences engage with and interpret queer performances
• Queer audiences may bring their own experiences and identities to bear on their interpretation of a performance, leading to diverse and multifaceted readings
• Queer performances can create a sense of community and solidarity among LGBTQ+ audiences, providing a space for shared experiences and collective identity formation
• The reception of queer theater by mainstream audiences has shifted over time, with increasing acceptance and recognition of LGBTQ+ stories and performers, although challenges and barriers to representation still remain