"I am deeply consumed. I am deeply committed. I am becoming, a Cowboy."
Michael Smith.
COWBOY is an interactive, solo contemporary-dance work that unpacks ones ability to have a complete, genuine and meaningful experience as an imagined self. An original sound-score composed by Ben Ely transforms our surroundings into that of a Western Film.
"From surfing trains and taming horses to wandering the desert, Cowboy holds a deeper inquiry into the existence of human persona beyond fantasy. By committing entirely to the iconography of a cowboy, I seek to expose desires and vulnerabilities that exist in our pursuit to form identity." - Michael Smith
COWBOY utilises its performance space to create both intimate settings and vast, open landscapes with a free-roaming audience. The work is site 'adaptable', tailoring the imagined reality to both indoor and outdoor locations, day or night. Michael operates the show from the inside, using a bluetooth remote to cue tracks and sound effects that transform active audience-members into saloon doors, brawlers, pianists, and other instruments of the Western world. Cowboy is poignantly humorous yet sensitive, where Michael's attempt for self-realisation and connection resonates beyond the fantasy.
COWBOY was created with The Farm as supported by Arts Queensland.
Saddle up for the ride!
Upcoming:
Brisbane Festival at Metro Arts, Sep 4-8 2020
COWBOY was created with The Farm as supported by Arts Queensland.
Saddle up for the ride!
Upcoming:
Brisbane Festival at Metro Arts, Sep 4-8 2020
Performance History:
TanzZeit, Berlin
AGITART Figueres Festival MOU, Spain
Dance Massive Site Responsive Showcase, Melbourne
Credits:
THE FARM
Choreographer/Performer: Michael Smith
Sound Composition: Ben Ely
Sound Design: Anna Whitaker
Lighting / Production: Chloe Ogilive
Producer: The Farm
Co-producer: Liesel Zink
Mentor: Gavin Webber
Dramaturgy: Gavin Webber, Marty Coutts, Liesel Zink
Images: Anne Moffett, Abbotsford Convent
Videography: The Jump TV, AGITART Figueres Festival MOU
TanzZeit, Berlin
AGITART Figueres Festival MOU, Spain
Dance Massive Site Responsive Showcase, Melbourne
Credits:
THE FARM
Choreographer/Performer: Michael Smith
Sound Composition: Ben Ely
Sound Design: Anna Whitaker
Lighting / Production: Chloe Ogilive
Producer: The Farm
Co-producer: Liesel Zink
Mentor: Gavin Webber
Dramaturgy: Gavin Webber, Marty Coutts, Liesel Zink
Images: Anne Moffett, Abbotsford Convent
Videography: The Jump TV, AGITART Figueres Festival MOU
I acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands and sea on which I live, work and create. I pay my respects to all First Nations peoples and their elders past, present and future. I recognise and honour their unique connection to place, community and movement. Sovereignty was never ceded.