(+Inspiration is a feature of The Daily City that presents a concept that might spark an idea and inspire you ina new direction.) Etiquette by Rotozaza, a show playing the Philadelphia Fringe (August 29-Sept 13), is not your typical Fringe show. YOU perform the half-hour show... in a coffee shop... wearing headphones with your lines being fed to you... and no one is watching you. And the best part? You pay $25 to do this!
"England’s Rotozaza invites you and a friend to star in a two-person show. Guided by a script fed through a pair of headphones, you and your partner will perform a half-hour drama while sitting at a table at the Last Drop Coffeehouse. Other café patrons may be sitting nearby, but only you and your partner will know that a performance is taking place. Rotozaza will tell you how to behave and what to say to one another, bringing you together in a pre-imagined dialogue. Before long, you’ll be reciting lines from Jean-Luc Godard in classic film noir fashion. Etiquette offers the fantasy of speaking with someone without having to plan what you say, exposing human communication at its rawest and most delicate, and exploring the difficulty of turning our thoughts into words we can trust."And my favorite part: "If you are a native speaker of Dutch, French, German, Portuguese, or Spanish, and you would like to perform Etiquette in your native language, please tell the Live Arts House Manager when you arrive at the Last Drop."
Photo Credit: Anna Karina in Jean Luc Godard's Vivre Sa Vie. Artwork by Ant Hampton.