Joining the Demon Crew

It doesn't feel quite right to review one's own work.

I'd originally booked to attend the Demon Crew event so that I could hear other other undergraduate students reading from their work. Then, last week, one of my tutors suggested I migth take part. 

I settled on a performance piece I've worked with before. It's based on a typical writing day and deals with my habit of procrastination. This ended up being the opening piece, and reading to an audience without looking for feedback is pretty daunting. It doesn't get any easier, regardless of audience size or whether or not I'm dressed as a cowboy (that's another story - a long one).

Other pieces included excerpts from science fiction stories, poems on numerous topics (whether abusive relationships or reading), and even a scene from a screenplay. It was great to see the variety of readings, and I commend my peers for also having the courage to share their work that way.


Andrew Roberts

Spandexcellent

Maybe you've always thought you want to trade in the early 6a.m. commutes, for knee pads and glittery pants while you walk out to thousands with only the greatest hits of mullet rock to accompany you. If so where better to find out more, than a discussion about the performance behind your hidden desire? It's taking place in the Clephan Building at De Montfort University at 4p.m. on Friday, 3rd March. You can book tickets here.

DMU will be welcoming Carrie Dunn, Broderick Chow, Ben Litherland and Claire Warden for a discussion of how professional wrestling might be understood as a performance. Let's hope the chairs are nailed down and the tables stay in one piece.
  

 Photo by Ed Webster
*As you can see in the picture above, one man is attempting a flying sideways hug in the direction of one who we can only assume is his best friend. The man in the stripy t-shirt is what we call a 'cuddle invigilator' whose job is to make sure the cuddle contains enough love and warm feelings. and warm feelings. 


Jack Robbie

Skimmed

Described as a “performance lecture”, The Price Of Everything is a piece of theatre, a lecture and a stand-up show all spliced together to form a unique one man show with the articulate and intelligent Daniel Bye at the helm. It’s like a collaboration between Al Gore, Stewart Lee and a local dairy farmer. If the performance was milk it would be skimmed, as there's not an ounce of fat in the whole hour. 

The show was post-modern and deconstructive, exploring the manipulation of audiences as well as the concept of value. A glass of milk became the currency of choice as Bye explored, well, the price of everything. Using a mixture of surreal allegories and hard facts, Bye delved into the world’s idea of worth and what our society values with a charm and likeability which made these complex ideas thoroughly accessible.

There was also a degree of self conscious satire as Bye demonstrated the callousness of the Conservative government and free market capitalism. The show ended on a tale espousing the need for kindness, even just the smallest, tiniest bit of kindness, which was reminiscent of Danny Wallace’s Join Me movement.    

Bye aimed to plant a small seed in the audience’s minds, only time will tell if he succeeded but you can see the progress being made here.

 

Matt Watts 

A third of a pint of milk

'The Price of Everything' was Daniel Bye's performance lecture about the value of things.

Having never been to a performance lecture I found it an odd experience to be part of; however it was also highly engaging. In the first half of the performance, as audience members we were thrown into the factual world of worth. How much are we, as human beings, worth, and what value do we place on the world around us? 

 

The second half consisted of a story telling us how much kindness is worth - and how it is that we find it much easier to believe a story about a bunch of idiots buying nothing, than a long continuous chain of kindness.

Completely bewitching, as well as prompting us to think about our actions as people, Daniel Bye is one definitely worth seeing. If the effective metaphor of milk throughout doesn't sway you then the free glass of milk may. An extraordinary experience.

 

Suzi Woolley