COC 3/6
The Choreography of Care
The Choreography of Care (3/6)
Alessandro Schiattarella
INVITATION FOR EMBODIED ENGAGEMENT FOR THE RECEIVER
- Put your earplugs in
- Sit somewhere comfortable
- Take a moment to listen to your breathing
- Relax your jaw
- Soften your eyes
- Try to make your breathing soundless and smooth
- Focus your attention on the sound of your heartbeat (it might be subtle, just take a moment to try to hear it)
- Keep your earplugs in if you feel comfortable with them.
- Whenever you feel ready, press play to launch the video on the website.
mayfield brooks
A Message
FROM the one who you are about to WITNESS... who has given up the ghost:
I’m not asking you to see me.
Sit, sip tea or do whatever you need to do to prepare yourself for the
viewing hours.
I am asking you to be a witness. CAN I GET A WITNESS?
I am asking you to take your pulse by pressing two fingers — the fingers to the left of your thumb on your left hand — against that small cavity of flesh behind & possibly slightly above your left earlobe. I am asking you to find your pulse.
Are you alive? Are you a WITNESS of your own life in this moment?
Thank your lucky stars that you are alive in this moment and that you have this opportunity to recognize your own life. But remember, I am not asking you to see me because the world has not prepared you to see me. Witness what you think you are seeing, do not try to see me, do not try to look too hard.
After the viewing hours, I would like you to commit to a practice of witnessing what you see, what you don’t see and what you cannot see. In other words observe yourself seeing. You are responsible, from this moment forth, to commit yourself to this practice as a move towards reparations, and as you know, repair work takes centuries. You and I will not live to see the repair work completed but you can still be a witness. Witnessing what you see is not everything, but it counts. The world that does not allow you to see me must end. Hopefully, you will aid in the process of ending that world. Ending the world as we know it would be reparations. Think about how you might do that? This world must decompose until it is gone. Then, we can start anew. Thank you for being here to witness this moment even though this world may not allow you to see me. I am thankful that you are here, from the bottom of my heart.
Caveat : If you do see me (really see me), you have most likely experienced anti-black violence against your body, psyche, and ancestors. You know what anti-black violence is and you know why I have given up the ghost at this particular moment in time.
You know how dangerous it is to be alive. So, you are not just a witness. You need your own viewing hours, and I invite you to sit with me. Hold my hand if you need to, and I will hold yours while we both give up the ghost. You and your ancestors were/are supposed to get reparations, but this world has not been accountable to you or them. This world needs to be destroyed so the repair work can begin. Can I get a witness? You deserve to be seen too. I will see you on the other side. Thank you for being here, from the bottom of my heart.
mayfield brooks
mayfield brooks improvises while black, and is currently based in Brooklyn, New York on Lenapehoking, the homeland of the Lenape people. mayfield brooks is a movement-based performance artist, vocalist, urban farmer, writer, and wanderer. They are currently an Artist-in-Residence (AiR) Program at the Center for Performance Research (CPR), is faculty at Movement Research NYC and the editor-in-chief of the Movement Research Performance Journal. mayfield brooks teaches and performs practices
that arise from their life / art / movement work, Improvising While Black (IWB), and was the 2021 recipient of the biennial Merce Cunningham Award in dance granted by the Foundation for Contemporary Arts.
Alessandro Schiattarella
Alessandro Schiattarella (he/him) was born in the city of Naples. He has had a career as a professional dancer of classical and contemporary dance in many companies in Europe. In the last years he has created several group choreographies and solos on the theme of inclusion, which have been shown in international and local theaters and festivals. He completed a Master’s degree in visual arts in Switzerland (where he has been living for several years) and collaborates with several artists on transdisciplinary projects.
