Burgerz

by Travis Alabanza

Hurled words. Thrown objects. Dodged burgers.

After someone threw a burger at them and shouted a transphobic slur, performance artist Travis Alabanza became obsessed with burgers. How they are made, how they feel, and smell. How they travel through the air. How the mayonnaise feels on your skin.

Burgerz is the climax of their obsession – exploring how trans and gender non-conforming bodies exist and how, by them reclaiming an act of violence, we can address our own complicity.

Genres: Plays, LGBT, Poetry, Queer, Nonfiction, Gender, Theatre

80 pages, Paperback

First published October 25, 2018

About the author

Travis Alabanza is a performance artist, theatre maker, poet and writer that works and survives in London, via Bristol. Their multidisciplinary practice uses a combination of poetry, theatre, sounscapes, projection and body-focussed performance art to scream about their survival as a Black, trans, gender-non-conforming person in the UK. Growing up on a council estate in the outskirts of a city, Alabanza prides themselves on a practice that is messy, abrupt, confrontation, atypical and self-taught, often using performance to provoke a strong emotion [and action] from their audiences. In the last two years Alabanza has cemented themselves as one of the most prominent emerging queer artists in the UK (As noted by Dazed, Prancing Through Life and MOBO) and has performed, talked and toured across numerous UK venues as well as internationally, to acclaim reviews.

First appearing in Poetry circles and becoming Published in the Black and Gay in the UK Anthology in 2015, Alabanza then toured and showcased their debut show ‘Stories of a Queer Brown Muddy kid’ across queer clubs and venues such as the RVT, Hackney Attic, Keble arts Festival and selling out Housman’s bookstore. In 2016 Alabanza continued to perform across multiple events and venues across the UK and abroad, touring lectures and performances to over 40 UK universities during LGBTQ+ and Black History month, as well as giving national talks on issues surrounding Blackness and Queerness at places such as the V&A and Bristol Watershed.
Their work was programmed at events such as Duckie, Bar Wotever, And What! Festival, Late at Tate, The V&A and Transmission Gallery. Alabanza also starred in Scottee’s Five Star, Roundhouse production ‘Putting Words in Your Mouth’, as well as becoming one of the 2016/17 Artist in Residences at the Tate Britain. In 2017 Alabanza is working on their solo exhibition ‘The Other’d Artist’ for Transmission Gallery, Glasgow, the sold out opening of their new show BURGERZ at Hackney showroom, supporting artists such as mykki blanco and aloe vaid-menon and has just finished completing a short US college tour with their work. Outside of making art, Alabanza enjoys discussing internet culture, memes, hair braiding, and dancing with other black people.

Reviews

[Marthe Debyser]

Perfect voor een treinrit Gent-Brussel

[•Paula• · Rating 5 out of 5]

They did a flawless job here: intersecting the violences in (the binarism of) gender and race, (performative) allyship, the violence in silence, and so much more. Looking forward to reading them more, and as much as they publish.

[Raz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so good. So good. Everyone needs to read this.

[Olive · Rating 4 out of 5]

i love crying in the uni library

recommended reading for Being Gay especially if you're cis and white

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Burgerz is forceful, heartbreaking and life-affirming. Through a masterful use of allegory, it enlightens the cis reader/audience on what it's like to be a trans/gender nonconforming person of color, and makes an urgent call for action to safeguard trans* and gender-nonconforming people's dignity and rights. Hope I get to see this on stage someday.

[Drac · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this book thinking, "God, this is pretentious," and I ended the book in tears.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal

[Jud :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

"My freedom is not just tied to yours, but is not freedom without yours."

[Karris Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible and intelligent play. Reading it back just made me want to watch it again.

[Darcy Bea · Rating 5 out of 5]

A powerful and moving exploration of the violence and pain experienced by trans, Non-binary and gender non-conforming folk who deviate from societies rigid gender norms. Travis explores how trans folk were once sacred and divine but colonialism sparked this shift and how modern day they are faced with a barrage of hate in the media and on the streets, with their very existence and humanity debated, this is particularly prevalence for Trans people of colour due to the further marginalisation due to race. In that debate they see their pain ignored and looked away from.

This book is a call to action to stand in solidarity against this violence, to stop looking away and to start looking at the fellow human beings in front of you. It's an absolute work of art and a must read!

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a quick read but so powerful - I know it will stay with me for a long time. Travis' one-person play explores violence against trans and gender non-conforming people and society's complicity through silence. I want everyone to read/see it.

[Mika · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE THIS i wish i could have seen the play live!! i definitely have to read more by Travis Alabanza!!

[AinaBN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very powerful and moving.

"It's ridiculous that we place two things next to each other and expect ourselves to be able to make a choice, or to lie and tell ourselves it is a choice when there are two things placed next to each other. As if something containing only two could ever be choice" (13)

"What came first? The Burger or the Box for the Burger. Man or woman. Or the cages made for man or woman ... Gender or violence? The last one was the same thing" (23)

"It's not just that before colonisation gender non-conformity existed in different forms, it's that colonisation and race continue to completely affect how gender continues to be formed ... Black bodies have known what it means to be de-gendered, hyper-gendered, misgendered since the beginning of your slavery" (33)

"To be trans and Black and gender non-conforming is to both be accustomed to the violence whilst also dissociating from the reality" (54)

"And I'm not going to say anymore that no one did anything, because walking away is action, is action that you choose. Because doing nothing is not neutral" (57-58)

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read for Uni theatre module. I've seen the verb "confronting" be used to describe the experience of this phenomenal piece of theatre, but I wonder in what contexts, because it can be applied to many components. Confronting for the audience to face their complicity. Confronting for the constructions of sex and gender that quiver when disrupted, or the construction of theatre as a piece of fiction when combined with autobiography. Confronting for processes of trauma. Confronting as an attribute to violence, as a connotation to action or inaction. For digestion, in the literal, practical and emotional sense.

I don't think that "confronting" can encompass the entirety of Burgerz because Alabanza's use of allegory extends beyond the stage. Their words dive into the histories that stand around their experience on Waterloo Bridge in 2016 just like the crowd. I am so grateful to have been introduced to this play.

[Frogb0i · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have left this review to settle for a while because I can never quite find the right vocabulary to express my admiration for Travis’s existence, and their work; How they are able to process and distill scary experiences into words. Every time I reread burgerz I feel a hundred different ways and when I was fortunate enough to see the show performed live, that too moved me beyond expectation. I was on the edge of my seat, the whole way through. I guess my review is simple, please read it. Don’t just read it but buy it and tell all your friends to buy it too. Don’t just read it, but digest it. We, as humans need to digest these words. We need to stop waiting for SOMEONE to do SOMETHING about it, (but not us), because we CAN do something. Bystanding an act of hatred is JUST as harmful as the act itself. Don’t just read it, but buy it & tell all your friends to buy it too.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very short book as it’s an account of a show which reads like a script.

Burgerz is a show about an incident in 2016 when someone threw a burger at Travis in the street. It’s full of metaphor and hard-hitting analysis on how those who are trans or nonbinary presenting are treated in public.

I found the text, and how the topic was opened up, incredibly touching and important. Through cooking the burger with audience members, Travis explores perception of trans people and power dynamics. I would really have liked to have seen this play out on stage!

An important read, particularly considering the situation for trans and non binary people remains difficult and dangerous, something we should all be aware of and acting to improve.

[Lizzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"To think that only trans people are misgendsred is the whitest way to think about bodies. Black bodies have known what it means to be degendered, hypergendered, misgendered since the beginning of your slavery."

A great piece of theatre and metatextual performance. I also included the quote above because I wish someone had said that to me before, gender is still something I find myself grappling with as I am perceived daily in my many forms and it felt validating to have that articulated that my experience of gender the degendering and hypergendering process is not new. It is felt and has existed in many bodies in many different timelines.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘It’s ridiculous that we place two things next to each other and expect ourselves to be able to make a choice, or to lie and tell ourselves it is a choice when there are two things placed next to each other. As if something containing only two could ever be a choice. That is not a choice. That is rather jumping to which death you think may be less painful. Hot dog or burger?’

I was privileged to see this performed live, and revisiting the printed text is still powerful - rich in metaphor and truth, it raises essential thoughts and questions for all of us.

[mxteryman · Rating 5 out of 5]

it started off seeming like a lot of very clear stream of consciousness i wasn't accustomed to in a play.

but then wow, the ability to clearly verbalise these dynamics of pain between humans, between the self and the world... or maybe just the strength to say all that needed to be said?

anyways, half-rambling language, beautiful writing, very important play. hug your queer and trans friends close and keep working on standing your ground for yourself and other people (a note also especially for myself).

[LizCastle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Makes me want to see the performance in person. But also stood alone as a extremely poignant text. Powerful and quick, i sat quietly with it on my lap for a while after putting it down. A play of pain, violence and harsh truths baked into one burger. Incredibly nuanced and felt something really resonate in the way they became obsessed with the mundane intricacies of what hurt them as to gain control in some way.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is definitely a play that is difficult to get the fullness of what it can be in written form. The use of audience participants adds an unknown element to the play that could add many layers. I would be curious to see how those might play out. A play about transphobia and how it plays out in the public sphere - the use of audience members pushes them beyond just observers.

[hayat · Rating 5 out of 5]

such a short read but so so powerful, i think it has definitely given me some sort of insight to a community i know little about, and has served as a reminder of the importance of kindness, but also speaking up when you see someone hurting - as staying silent or ‘neutral’ is just as bad as being the aggressor. valuable read.

[Gray Jabaji · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was actually so good?????? not that i wasn’t expecting it to be, but i didn’t know what to expect. i loved the metaphors related to gender and transness that were in this book (?) (i don’t know what to classify this as) and i thought they were very accurate. the ending was also so powerful and satisfying and i love how the story came full circle

[Java · Rating 5 out of 5]

Travis created such an incredible piece of art.They speak about GNC tribulations but what made me burst into tears was the colloquy they had with the queer ancestors.It was so affirming,brimming with solace.

“But when you close your eyes at night, and remember that we have survived all of this, that we have been here, have existed, have lived beyond the jeer,”

5/5 star

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a very quick read, so it left me wanting more. Even as a performance it would be very short. I wish it was published with another of their works!

Don’t get me wrong! It was great, and I wish I had seen it. I just wanted more.

[Max Jung]

Glad I've finally read this! Not sure how it got on my to read list but it's been there for quite some time.

Would have been great to watch this live or even a recording but it still says a lot without the physical stage

[C Patt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw it in London and can I just say wow.
much of the show relies on the Travis's ability to read the room which is another example of a skill developed out of necessity for survival

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE!!

[Kayden Merritt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Theatrical concepts weren’t fully developed. At times I wished for more abstraction. It seemed like the making the burger bit was a fun idea for the first 10 minutes until we realized we actually have to make a burger and then we just got into the big long speech we wanted to give.

[Pip Wip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could absolutely see this staged in my head while I read. I felt like I was just chatting to the lead myself. The only bummer is that it is so short, but i am not willing to reduct a star for that. Reading it made me reflect on my own life and navigating in today's world.

[Theo Chen]

this is a powerful work!
lots to unpack regarding metaphor, of giving an audience agency / audience participation with a twist…
of the frustration/need/urge to speak or be heard in today’s world… and how that manifests itself in dramaturgy.