Risking Ruination is the second phase of a project that began to take form in September with Undoing:gniodunU, a dance and visual art presentation of four distinct evenings at Archway Gallery in response to Donna E. Perkins' Coming Undone: Paintings; Photos; Performances.
The work referenced the four-year collaborative life between visual artist Donna E. Perkins and choreographer Jhon R. Stronks. The evening sparked the birth and continued development of two duets as well as a choreographic system that has come to be known as #openwiderplease.
Risking Ruination features performances by dancers Jonnesha Hawkins-Minter, Nicole McNeil and choreographer Jhon R. Stronks. The set for Undoing:gniodunU was a series of paper floors that came undone over the four nights of performance and was deconstructed in collaboration with visual artist and performer Alonso Tapia-Benitez. Risking Ruination distils these elements into a singular performance experience that examines the crossing, blending and sometimes evaporation of boundaries/lines and the risk associated with opening beyond what is conventionally safe into the spaces between.
The evening, held in the Rice University Dance Theater inside The Barbara and David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center, is a hybrid gallery/theater experience and is designed to be viewed on all four sides. Folding chairs will be available. The audience is encouraged to make themselves comfortable and move around as desired.