Last week I used the assignments from my first ever online physical comedy class to explore some ideas and imagery for THE CURE FOR FEAR that I find delightful. Above is some highlight clips and full length versions of these videos are available to patrons.
This is my 3rd solo show, and I’m finding a most joyful way of putting this one together. I’ve learned to trust my gut (this is a practice by the way) and am following and exploring bits of images that emerge from my psyche. I trust that in digging, and excavating I will come upon the root that connects this one tale to a universal story.
The CURE for FEAR is about the disconnect that comes from trauma. I’m pretty sure there is NO HUMAN that doesn’t have some sort of trauma lodged in their body. This can be CAPITAL T trauma such as a car accident, violence, and sexual abuse, or developmental trauma- such as being left in a cold room without enough blankets as a baby. I am discovering the power that embodiment has in releasing trauma from the body in order to free up life force energy. (Turn neurosis into focus- Woo!)
Loretta has been a character that I’ve been playing with for a few years now. She is unworthiness personified and she tries so hard to hide from her own unhappiness and discomfort. How did she get so disconnect from her body and emotions? And, how can she find connection again?
As deep as the subject matter is, you might say this is no laughing matter. But that is the nature of balance- we laugh and we cry. There is no joy without pain. Are we willing to sit with grief and feel it in our bones before it passes onward?
My Dad passed away after the first of these physical comedy classes. He was a good man in many ways and also perhaps a tortured soul. We had a complicated relationship, but in the end there was only love. I sat present with him as he took and released his last breath.
The CURE FOR FEAR is a divine comedy of the soul- and I am only following the golden thread of the hero-path.
“And where we had thought to find abomination, we shall find a god; where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves; where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our own existence; where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world.” – Joseph Campbell THE HERO WITH A THOUSAND FACES
Thank you for reading “THE BONES”- a process report of art and decolonization.
I am currently researching “THE CURE FOR FEAR” – a physical theatrical/ digital arts exploration around the disconnection that occurs from trauma. In a world where the power holders would have us privatize and distrust our feelings in silence and obedience, how does one begin and continue on a journey of decolonization and reconnection? What transformation happens within the psyche as a person emerges from despondency and disembodiment?
I believe in the power of laughter, so, how can one find lightness in the heaviest of topics? How can the subject matter be delivered in a way that surprises the experiencer with their own discoveries?
Always open to feedback if it is constructive and kind. No haters please. candicerobertstheatre@gmail.com
Candice Roberts 