Out from Under: Texts by Women Performance Artists

by Lenora Champagne (Editor)

Using elements of autobiography to address such issues as religion, sex, race, family and the struggle of women to move beyond their traditional roles in society, these women integrate aspects of ritual, monologue, music, visual arts and theatre in their performances as they help to forge a new literary and theatrical tradition.

Genres: Art

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1990

Reviews

[ice_butch .jpg · Rating 5 out of 5]

uhhhh YUM haven't read many transcripts like this. I think of writing in my own art practice like a "teeny piece of bandaid, little folded piece of bandaid" (from Writing in I must be living twice... crossover event time haha).
But this book introduces a strange new angle for me. Scripting, or performance, or ideas worked out with words yes as a medium but used and molded and changed from their static life on the page vs. their embodied life in performance. Super interesting tension there. Probably helpful for me, who, like Eileen, feels that "sometimes I can't bear my thoughts". Loved it, lovely as a borrowed thing.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slim volume, heavy reading, uneven quality.
Contents: women with Daddy issues, women with Mommy issues, a lot of earnest second-wave feminism. I think that performance art has progressed since the eighties. On the other hand, there is Laurie Anderson. I think she's really found her groove with her orchestral pieces for dogs, but some of her early work is included here. Worth reading the Rachel Rosenthal piece, too.
The last couple of pieces are the weakest in the book - and I include the one by the editor. Editing and performing are two entirely different skill sets, perhaps. Or maybe I just don't care to hear about how she got over her boyfriend.

[Valissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Speech is the body part of thinking, the voice of the mind. Writing is the blood and mind mixing to speak through the fingers, through the hands."

[Natalie]

Interesting collection of work. Some I found inspiring and some I found tiresome. I really enjoyed Holly Hughes, Karen Finley, and Lenora Champagne's work.