Bobrauschenbergamerica
Robert Rauschenberg lived in the artistic period between abstract expressionism and pop art. His painting and sculptures display his belief that there is no difference between art objects and ordinary objects. He believed that an object became art when he said it was. How would his art reflect itself as a live performance? Well the talented and edgy SpyAnts Company with the help of ubiquitous Bart De Lorenzo have put on bobrauschenbergamerica by the controversial playwright Charles Mee as part of the shared season at inside the Ford Theatre.
Playwright Mee is no stranger to experimentation so writing a play that would represent Robert Rauschenberg’s view of America presented as a play but reflecting his paintings. Mee has stated, “In the mid 1980s, the whole world was Rauschenberg. We have lots of stories, and we are trying to figure out how to get along in a world where there are a thousand points of view.” So Mee conceived of a series of loosely connect stories (though they all involve love) and more or less threw them together to see how they would make a connection. For Rauschenberg there is always a connection and its always alive and vital.
In viewing the show at Inside The Ford I must admit I was totally puzzled about what the hell was going on. I was not alone. But as the piece unfolded I found my mind, as well as the characters were making the connection and the message was one of hope and love. Mr. DeLorenzo let the cast more or less improvise how they wanted to present the individual stories. When he liked what he saw it stayed in. The result is a piece that seems almost improvised but the structure emerges as the piece develops. The cast, Mee, and DeLorenzo are to be congratulated for this daring and provocative experience in the theatre. bobrauchenbergamerica plays at Inside The Ford until Feb. 28th.