{"id":1328,"date":"2016-07-15T13:27:31","date_gmt":"2016-07-15T12:27:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/?p=1328"},"modified":"2016-08-05T18:54:00","modified_gmt":"2016-08-05T17:54:00","slug":"stainspotting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/2016\/07\/stainspotting.html","title":{"rendered":"Stainspotting"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"IHCP<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s the pale grey sweaters that are so creepy. Thin, tight, high necked, they cling to the performers\u2019 bodies. They\u2019re nubbled by nipple and you can practically count the ribs. And, within minutes of the two performers launching into the rancid domestic intensities and dance-lunge routines of I Heart Catherine Pistachio<\/em><\/a>, a dark seep of sweat becomes visible. Rockpools under the armpits, rivulets down the torso, a saline lagoon lapping over the back.<\/p>\n

Encounter\u2019s two-person show<\/a> \u2013 devised and directed by Jen Malarkey, which I saw at the Yard<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 is both easy and horrible to watch. Easy because it\u2019s built of keenly observed comedy, tonguelash domestics, daft dance and nostalgic tunes. Horrible because these combine in a tale of vicious family dysfunction and sexual abuse.<\/p>\n

Carl Harrison (taller, scathing, unabashed) trained in dance. Nick Blakeley (shorter, earnest, boxy) trained as an actor. Both fantastic. But for their specs, they\u2019re identically dressed: baby blue nylon\u00a0skirts, long yellow wigs roughly pulled into a ponytail. They play both Catherine \u2013 unloved, inappropriately loved \u2013 and her parents Linda and Lionel, needy swingers hoping their home may become the Playboy Mansion of their northern gated community. Emotionally, physically, sexually abused, we follow Catherine\u00a0from birth to adulthood in just an hour.<\/p>\n

The casting is genius, fold upon fold. Two Catherines, urging-restraining each other, clinging tight for comfort. When they play their parents, sniping at chairs at the back of the stage (Blakely-as-Lionel manspreading without conviction, Harrison-as-Linda twisted tight as a mamba), you\u2019re left with a troubling disconnect. Has this pair of ordinary monsters created Catherine? Is she retrospectively performing her parents? Family dysfunction and dependency fold upon each other. The critic Maddy Costa likens the effect to Todd Solondz\u2019 films, which is a sharp call. Linda and Lionel speak fluent Abigail\u2019s Party<\/a>,<\/em> every brand-name line a giveaway of social climb and class shame. Ingratiating themselves into the community, whatever it takes \u2013 badger kink masks, using Catherine\u2019s pony as a live pi\u00f1ata \u2013 they\u2019d be pitiable if it wasn\u2019t for the callous indifference with which they treat their daughter.<\/p>\n

Frantic desire and rank discomfort<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2018You\u2019ll like Catherine Pistachio<\/em>,\u2019 someone told me last year. \u2018It\u2019s got dancing<\/em> in it.\u2019 To be honest, that wasn\u2019t the draw \u2013 little is improved by the addition of contemporary dance, not even contemporary dance. But there\u2019s a compulsion to the Catherines\u2019 clunkingly committed routines \u2013 especially by thrashing, bendy Harrison, always with an expression of furious intent. Under movement director Simone Coxall, Catherine\u2019s break for freedom in movement seems hobbled from the start \u2013 ramrod limbs, semi-coordinated voguing. As with the sweat, it signals bodies expressing themselves with frantic desire and rank discomfort.<\/p>\n

The history of dance costume is a battle against visible perspiration. Breathable fabrics, detachable pit pads, the modern miracle of lycra. So why would they choose such vile costumes that advertise the performers\u2019 clammy efforts?<\/p>\n

They choose it because they want us to see that nasty sweat, of course. They want to make us wince a little, recoil a little. They do it because IHCP<\/em> is a piece about bodies, the things they do and are made to do, the unease that accompanies them. The disgust, shame and coercion, made visible. There\u2019s no wet wipe that can swab away that stain.<\/p>\n

Follow David on Twitter: @mrdavidjays<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s the pale grey sweaters that are so creepy. Thin, tight, high necked, they cling to the performers\u2019 bodies. They\u2019re nubbled by nipple and you can practically count the ribs. And, within minutes of the two performers launching into the rancid domestic intensities and dance-lunge routines of I Heart Catherine Pistachio, a dark seep of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1329,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[29,34],"class_list":{"0":"post-1328","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-dance","9":"tag-theatre","10":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1328","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1328"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1328\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1340,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1328\/revisions\/1340"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1329"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1328"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1328"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/performancemonkey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1328"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}