the walls of my room are curved

The performance uses several microphones attached to the dancer’s moving body, capturing the live sounds of creaking and crackling bones and joints as they shift, transfer, extend, and rotate. While the dancer moves, an electronic musician samples, processes, synthesizes the sounds of the performer’s body into a musical score in real-time.

This generative feedback loop of dance creating music/ music creating dance blurs the lines between body and musical instrument, organic and synthetic, human and device. ‘The walls of my room are curved’ is an invocation to listen deeply to the body, a challenge to crip the cyborg figure, and a meditation on the promise (and process) for interdependence.

Directed and Choreographed by Yo-Yo Lin

Music by Despina

Performed by Yo-Yo Lin and Despina

Costume Design by Bao Nguyen

Webcam Shader by Avneesh Sarwate

Lighting by Beaudau Banks

Produced by Morgaine DeLeonardis

Documentation by Steve Dabal and Jesse Sperling

Production Assistance by THE FAMILY

This performance was made possible by the Dance. Disability. Artistry. Residency grant by Dance/NYC. Performance and rehearsal space made possible by Gibney Dance.

This performance is part of a series of works in Modes of Embodiment, a research-based project made possible by EYEBEAM.