The performances and sculptures that make up this ongoing project study a collection of performance scores written during lockdown in early 2021.
In the summer of 2020, I interviewed the artist Clifford Owens about his performance work for TALKER #9.
While discussing the current working conditions for performance making, Clifford identified a growing intensity and rage that was building as the COVID-19 pandemic limited possibilities for live work and proximity with audiences. He said,
“…when we can make performance art again for an audience and with the public, my god, watch out. I’m terrified by the beautiful things that are going to be created.”
Working from Clifford’s observation, I developed a project that would invite participants to join me and produce a series of new performance scores through and online workshop. This took place in March 2021 and became an unforeseen and unique record of that moment in time. I found myself the custodian of a collection of over 50 new performance scores that took the temperature of that moment in different ways. Since then I have been exploring ways to share these. Each score is an invitation to reflect critically on the impact the lockdowns had on performance making and the creative resilience that was drawn upon during them.
Please email for more information about programming the live performance of I am Terrified…
The scores can be viewed here and include contributions from:
Elina Akhmetova, Giles Bailey, James Baker, Joni Barnard, Sophie Bates, Tanja Baudoin, Celia Bickersteth, Korina Biggs, Beth Bramich, Francis John Chan, Ghost Chan, Ilker Cinarel, Gareth Clark, Liv Collins, Lydia Davies, Oliver Doe, Freya Dooley, Rosalind Duguid, Kathryn Elkin, Heledd Evans, Allanah Gales, Susie Green, Richard James Hall, Bex Harvey, Lucy Heaton, Danielle Hewitt, Rosie Hillier, Jesse Howarth, Zoe Kendall, Bridget Kennedy, Aidan Knowles, Pheobe Law, Serena Lee, Maxi Ley, Anna Łuczak, Cannach MacBride, Kitty Martin, Karolin Meunier, Anthea Moys, Cinzia Mutigli, Chris Owen, Sara Jane Palmer, Irene Revell, Kirsty Rosenstock, Kerstin Schroedinger, Olivia Scurr, Lauren Shakespeare, Samuel Shams, Louise Shelley, Carrie Skinner, Katherine Smith, Helen Smith, Corin Sworn, Olivia Turner, Charlotte Veal, Nina Wakeford, Maya Wallis, Erin Walter, Jake Watts, Nathaniel Whitfield, Rebecca Wilcox, Siân Williams and Sam Williams.
Photographs by Tobias Vollmer and Martín La Roche