This weekend I was privileged enough to sit in on a
rehearsal for a Hampshire College, a Division III production that my close friend has been costume designing for. Aside from being introduced to aspects of theater I had
never even thought of (the concept of a dry tech rehearsal, and idea about lighting and set design) I was really struck by the show's conceptual underpinnings. The piece is titled, “Fat, Black and Ugly". Here is a description of the piece by creator Eshe Shukura:
"A performance installation that displays my personal Fat Body. Considers my brown, St Louis born, Atlanta raised skin. Remembers my female body.
Explores other fat. Connects to other fat. Exposes, critiques, and invites. Stories are captured. Multiple identities are awakened. Bodies are moving through around, under, above, and between textured spaces. Creating connections that are daring to exist.This show contains nudity and is not suitable for children. As the title suggests, this show deals with issues of fatphobia and anti-black racism."
In a particularly salient sequence, the three women on stage sing an almost seductive manner, about the allure of fried chicken. The cultural meaning that the grease holds for them. One woman also addresses "fat phobia," and how people shame others who embody what they themselves are afraid of becoming.
It got me thinking about how powerful the tools of shame are
in the preservation of our society. Shame for being fat- lazy, no good, not
productive, why don't you get lipo or a tummy tuck?. Shame for being ugly- why don’t you wear makeup? Shame for being poor- why don't you work harder?
As I watched the rehearsal, the spectacle of Eshe and the other actresses, conveying images and experiences of "fat" "black" and "ugly" I became acutely aware that I am a walking inscription of the opposite. I am "thin" "white" and "pretty".
In White Like Me, Wise discusses his lineage, and acknowledges that his past
includes slave owners. He also takes solace in the fact that his bloodline also
includes a woman who was active in anti-slavery activism during his time. I
used this line of thinking to examine my place as a white American.
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