An Empress. A Degenerette. A Woman.
Lupanaria, which translates roughly as ‘a den of she-wolves’
Meretrix,
Noctiluae, the night moths,
Nonariae,
Gallinae,
Quadrantariae,
Aeliciariae,
Bustuariae,
In a word:
Prostibula.
Speak, o muse, of the Empress of Rome. The long-forgotten, the lied-of, the whore. Speak of the Sun-Worshipper, the Pagan, The Easterner, the High Priestess, the Sun-On-Earth, the Slut, the Bitch, the Tranny. Speak of that girl, throat-slit at eighteen. Speak of Elagabalus; For she shall hear.
ELAgabalus
ELAgabalus is a 121 performance exploring trans intimacy and boundaries. Across two spaces, the trade and the trick, the audience is invited to explore the story of Rome's lost trans empress through cards, contracts, lipsticks, and temptations.
ELAgabalus is about the relationship and solidarity between a transfemme ‘not quite a sex worker’ Elagabalus, and their transmasc ‘not quite a bodyguard’ partner, Janus. It is for trans and queer people to have a space to reflect on our shared histories, and how we may negotiate the boundaries of our bodies together, while also inviting others to bear witness to these relationships.
In the performance, one audience member at a time is gently guided by Janus through the process of filling in a form which dictates the second part of the work, when they go behind a screen to meet Elagabalus. Across both sections, there is a detail-oriented aesthetic experience, gently held in a conversational mode. Through clear and minimalist use of the colours green and purple, we explore the story of Elagablus with a sensual and evocative encounter, rather than a static historical analysis.
At a moment of attack on trans people's bodily autonomy, ELAgabalus enables us to think about the difficult and messy aspects of trans desire and boundaries. It will allow trans people to have nuanced conversations within the performance and also create a space where cis audience members are invited to play by a different set of rules.
Jane Morris has been performing variations on this piece for the past two years at house parties and underground queer settings. Now, as shelf/break, we want to develop the piece into a full-length work suitable for a festival, live art, or experimental theatre setting.
development
ELAgabalus emerged from a series of performance-encounters held over the last three years at house parties thrown by queers across South London. This form, of the party where you may without realising it stumble into a meaningful encounter with another person’s secrets, ideas, or body, is instrumental to ELAgabalus’s current form. 121 performance prioritises the live moment of encounter; it is an invitation to duet or dance with an audience member, who becomes a live collaborator in the experience. Constantly revising, rehearsing, and responding to the experience of embodying the work, it has now reached a point where we are trying to expand it into a piece ready for a festival context.
future
As we develop ELAgabalus, we are hoping to gain opportunities to expand it into a full length performance where colour, fabric, sound, and interactivity unite to submerge the audience in this journey backwards in both personal and historical time. We are actively applying for opportunities to R&D and share extracts of ELAgabalus.
If you are looking for 121 performance for your party, club night, or festival, please get in touch!