Free Talk "Q&A: Expectation, Hope and Promise" with Jef Johnson
Q: "Who am I, if not what others make me to be?"
A: "I am the whole experience that is me happening right here and now."
As we approach mid-December, some are finishing school terms, others preparing for holidays, still others are preoccupied with the year coming to an end, and all are consumed with worry. Whether performing on exams, purchasing the right gift, satisfying the social requirement of “good spirit” or dwelling on the accomplishments of the closing year, people are preoccupied with “expectation” in December.
In mid-January, the holiday season comes to a close and we return to public responsibility. Renewed from a connection to family and friends, the personal spirit is lifted and full of “hope and promise.” The new year therefore brings personal awakening and the confidence to step away from public expectation. This feeling of freedom soon fades as we fall back into the rhythm of the everyday, the predictable and the status quo.
“Man's nature is to establish predictable circumstances and to hold tight to the daily manner of maintaining that predictable ‘reality.’ Awareness requires freedom from rigid constructions and formulas. It requires presence and effort....without the guarantee of any special benefit.”
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“The simplicity of naive existence is the root which nourishes all things.”
Jef Johnson is a leader in the field of performance theory. His research focuses on naive experience, consciousness, play, patterned behavior and social identity. He is a principal artist in the Broadway and International touring company of Slava’s Snowshow. He has also worked with Cirque du Soleil as clown-animator, special artistic consultant and workshop director. He has been investigating personal perception, performance and play for the past 25 years and has more than 20 years of experience working in live performance. He has given Master Classes, Conferences and Workshops to many organizations, theatres and universities including Cirque du Soleil, Slava’s Snowshow, Circo Sentido, Circo de Mente, Camp Broadway, University of Houston, University of Pennsylvania, Colombia University, University of Minnesota, CUNY, SUNY, NYU, UNAM , UDEM, UQROO and CENART. He is director of Máscara/Clown and is on the faculty of the Nouveau Clown Institute in Barcelona, Spain. Currently he is in Mexico, conducting research into the nature of human consciousness, creative association and social performance. Drawing from Clown, Mask and Butoh, his work has initiated deeper investigation into the primary essence of human experience, character and performance.
Made possible through funding by the Middletown Commission on the Arts, sponsored by The Buttonwood Tree.
