GAYLETTER

The progressive dancer and performance artist Rebecca Patek who’s now performing at the Festival TBD: Emergency Glitter, tells us more about her piece ‘ineter(a)nal f/ear.‘  She also talks about trauma, violence, being a sexual person and her deep love for sperm…

How old are you and where are you from? I feel like age and home are concepts that keep shifting according to what context I am in.

How long have you been dancing? I have been dancing my whole life…starting first with ballet.

What was your inspiration for this piece’ineter(a)nal f/ear’? Actually Olen Holm and I first met because he was an audience member for a piece I did last year. I asked for volunteers from the audience and he jumped up. He ended up tackling me onstage wearing a ski mask (for the piece) and it turned into a kind of sex scene and a few months later he emailed me that he still had the ski mask and he was using it as a cum rag. We met for coffee after that.

Tell me about the promotional images for the show, they are great, why the use of cum in some of the pictures? I like that sperm is a visual documentation of orgasm. Sometimes women spurt when they orgasm but for the most part it is an internal experience. I think it fascinates me how with men you can literally see the orgasm. It is a record of pleasure…also using the cum on the face shot is kind of a porn reference. It seems to be the go to spot in a lot of pornography.

Who’s sperm is it? tell me more about it. I am not sure whose it is. I forgot to ask his name after.

Do you like sperm? I do like sperm.

How did you end up working with Sam Roeck in this piece? I know Sam from the dance community. I know he can be funny and this piece uses comedy. He is a great performer and also super cute and fun to hang with so I thought he would  be perfect for it.

Why is dance important to you, why do you do it? Dance is important because it is a way to express yourself using your body and this is something lacking a lot in our culture. Being physical in a way that is expressive and creative. Also dancing can lead to ecstatic states and it makes for better sex.

What has been your experience dancing this piece? It has been at various moments incredibly fun, absurd, a turn on, embarrassing, scary and also really emotional.

Are you a very sexual person? I would say yes, yes, yes.

Are you queer? Do you have sex with men or women or both? I like men and women both and also everything in between.

How does your piece explore trauma, violence and shame? Wait..didn’t you see it? Just kidding.. the piece uses humor to explore sexual shame first because it is easier to talk about things using humor and second because it is more fun and third because sex is funny and shame is kind of funny too.

Do you have any regrets? I have many regrets but also I don’t regret having regrets cause it makes me more likely to try to do the right thing now, whatever that is.

Who do you hate? I am a lover.

What does the future hold? I hope to find a way to keep making art.

Don’t miss Rebecca’s ‘ineter(a)nal f/ear’ last performance at the Festival TBD: Emergency Glitter this Saturday, July 27 at 10:00PM.