Bilguisa Speaks Up
Reviewed by Tamara Kamermans
The vibe in Bilguisa Speaks Up is that our only truth of self is our own. Nicci Pryce performs with intensity the dilemma of her character in this production. She and her sister have to pass a gender challenge from their opposing team to be able to play. Pryce eloquently and frankly shares with her audience the intensity of her journey in speech and rap and questions the absurdity of being judged and tested by systems that have no understanding of our personal value or skills to begin with.
Playwright Donna-Michelle St. Bernard draws on current affairs to draw the audience into this ethical churn on skills, gender and race and the use of gender testing to categorize and penalize us. She calls us to ask ourselves how a gender test, for example, could hold more weight in our understanding of self than our actual life experiences. Who controls the definitions of whom we are and why should we comply with them? Maybe in the end, stepping outside of the game is the best way to reach peace and to show that your skills and qualities are beyond biased social structures at play in the world. This is the only way to exit the cognitive dissonance at play.
Excellent performance coupled with engaging, real life issues: this is a must see for everyone. This is also available as an Affinity Performance.
Age Suitability: All Ages (everyone - including young children and sensitive viewers)
Warnings: None
Venue: Backroom @ Ringside
Special Performances: Relaxed Performance, Mask Mandatory Performance, Affinity Performance
Genre: Theatre—Drama, Storytelling/Solo Show
Director
Ravyn Wngz
Performer
Nicci Pryce
Playwright
Donna-Michelle St. Bernard
