When I was working with Ishmael Houston-Jones, he sent me a copy of one of his full length pieces called THEM. The piece, which was created in 1986, explores the fears of the gay community in response to the beginnings of the AIDS Crisis through improvisational movement. While I was watching, I suddenly saw a man standing off to the side reciting provocative, hypersexual poetry that was absolutely eery and moving. It was Dennis Cooper.
Who is this man, I thought to myself. I began to research Dennis Cooper, who I thought was solely a poet. I soon realized that he was artistically all over the map, literally and metaphorically. He is an American artist who currently resides in Paris, but works all over the world, which I can understand based on the radical nature of his queer work. He began his career as a writer, creating poetry and fiction that can be sometimes difficult to read due to its blunt content. Since that time, has created art for theatre and has created a blog of his own (which seeems to make him extremely excited).
What I love about his blog is that it’s very much like ours. It’s a dramaturgical blog in that he shares what is inspiring him and provides as much information as possible to support his subject of research. I think that this is a great resource because, somewhat like Suzan-Lori Parks’ 365 Plays, his audiences have a chance to see what may be making him tick. Also, his posts are really interesting and present information about artists who may otherwise be ignored.
I am only in the beginning of reading a slew of his works, but right now what I’m discovering is attracting me most is his authenticity and his risks.
