Back to Back Theatre: Small Metal Objects

Australia's Back to Back Theatre challenges notions of public art on several levels. The ensemble's "Small Metal Objects" has been performed in public spaces throughout the world, including busy train stations, and locally it will be set up in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. The audience, wearing headsets, listens to the dialogue from the main protagonists, Gary and Steve, two men who could be perceived as mentally disabled, as they negotiate a "transaction" with two busy executives. Reality often intrudes, which is among the main points of the work: Who knows what will happen in the Sculpture Garden each night that could possibly transform the performance and the viewer's perception of Gary, Steve, and the world they inhabit? Founded in 1987, Back to Back Theatre creates work with and by people who are perceived to have a disability and has received acclaim for its provocative work that constantly raises moral, philosophical, and political questions about the value of human lives while simultaneously smashing assumptions. You'll be more than an audience member for this piece; you'll also be a voyeur and must come to terms with your own comfort level in that role. Smart theater always offers the opportunity to consider yourself part of the process.
Thursdays, Fridays, 7 p.m.; Saturdays, 1 & 7 p.m. Starts: June 5. Continues through June 7, 2008