Rebeca Medina's Paraiso @ Five Myles Gallery
Rebeca Medina's Paraiso @ Five Myles Gallery - A collaboration between Angela Mariana Schöpke and Shannon Elizabeth O'Brien. Below is a documentation of two conversations we had about Rebeca Medina’s Paraiso, which we saw on November 12, 2015 at Five Myles Gallery in Brooklyn. Our first conversation took place immediately following the performance and we followed up three days later.
Conversation 1
Walking home from Five Myles.
Shannon Elizabeth O’Brien: I really liked the last image. That was where I felt the most. It’s like walking into an abandoned house, where everything’s been left the way it was and you then know how it was put there. I liked that image better once the dancers had left. That was the most powerful part of the piece for me.
Angela Mariana Schöpke: It’s interesting you say that, because in that moment, I felt like a loved one had just died and I was seeing their space.
S: It felt like a space with people gone.
A: Exactly.
S: I had a hard time with the part right before the final image. It’s difficult to incorporate dialogue into/after dance.
A: I remember that was my initial feeling when the piece started. I also struggled in general with some of the beseeching looks to the audience.
