Coerce into Resistance

From here I coerce you into resistance. I stand by refusal and I will coerce people to join me from here. I know that my predisposition towards serving (a racist, sexist, ableist, capitalist hetero-patriarchy) will act as a kind of self-coercian away from there. I want to say yes even when I want no.

I resist representation. The watchers of the work will come with their/our histories and predispositions which may refuse my refusal. Representation persists. If a problem with what circus does lies in a dismissal of what is represented in favour of an indulgence(?)/attention to practice. What can this teach about unrepresentational work? If the world co-erces me into making work that serves it, its histories, my continuation, how to notice that coercion from within. How to resit it? What about physical preparation? What is a physical practice of resisting coercion?

How to use coercion for other goals? Other ideas? What are the lineages we are working with, and how do they want us to use coercion? When I think coercion, I think seduction. Is that because that is how I have learned that coercion is available for me? What are my terms for coercion? How does a performance use coercion? Through a framework? Through framing it as dialogue? Misdirection as coercion?

How does rigging coerce? How does the rigging we have available to us, to our imaginations coerce us? How do normativities coerce us through disguising themselves as subversions? What am I trying to escape from? Why do I try to do it here? What is a performers relationship with applause? Affirmation? Confirmation? Appreciation? When is applause coerced.  What is perpetuated through re-enforcement? What is violent applause.

I’m sorry if I co-erced you into dealing with my own shit.

Affectionately / Coercively,

F,xxx

Leuven, June 2021