AN INTERPRETATION OF
"DOG DAYS ARE OVER"
by Florence + The Machines
A PERFORMANCE ART
by STEM MENDEL
REFLECTION
Apprehending the beauty and the contemporary of the song, "Dogs Days Are Over", was a hard day's work. With a confusing, surrealistic music video and an unusual melody from a 2009 music, we were tasked by our Contemporary Arts adviser to interpret it through a performance art. It was apparent from the expressions of our classmate that the song was very confusing and subtly weird, although some really liked it, for which we're happy for them. After the song was presented in the class, bewilderment ensued, the song was just mind-blowing and unique, and from the looks again from our classmates, we knew exactly what all of us were thinking: how do we interpret this perplexing music video into a performance art?
"Dog Days Are Over" was an odd, peculiar, but a unique, fresh music to us, and it is just right and worthy to interpret it as the same way it showed to us. It has to be. Someone then suggested a great, mind-boggling concept: REVERSE!
The concept of doing a performance art in a reversed song was amazing, but the execution would be the prickles of the problem, and it strong required everyone's maximum cooperation. At first, majority were reluctant on the idea, but with strong convincing from the proponent of the amazing concept, all of us saw its potential, and we ungrudgingly agreed.
We then strategized our schedules and decided to do it in the dismissal time every now and then. The first two days of the practice was a sure loss to us due the team was counterproductive. But with the help of some leaders, ardent to the task, the team were strictly disciplined and motivated and rapidly came back to its productivity again and was able to work with all needed things in the following days, especially in the day before the performance, the 7th of February 2018, a Wednesday.
We prepared, we strived, and the fruit of our labor ripened, it was sweet, it was successful, our performance was successful. With latex white painting on our bodies and odd, filthy costumes, added with silly dance steps, we were able to successfully performed our best. The reversed video on our dance was just simply amazing (in which you can watch above if you haven't, starts at 3:00), although it was not flawless like the other teams, we were able to deliver a concept with such uniqueness and contemporary, people had amazing reactions to it which filled our heart with glee, our efforts were worth it. Even though we had a hard time body painting ourselves, dancing right above the hot sun with even hotter grounds, and washing and removing the body paint in the same, we can say that all was worth it, just to deliver a message with such unique style and technique, truly a contemporary performance art.
They were lessons learned out from the activity, not only from the song or the music video, but also to the process and the performance procedures as well. But the main lesson that we can sure that the whole section has learned is that:
IMAGINATION AND SKILL over TECHNICALITIES
Basically, you do not need to be over the top with the terms just to be a contemporary artist. If you can dance, you can paint, you can sculpt, you can sing, anything, as long as you consider it as an art, what's stopping you?
BEHIND THE SCENES
© Andrea Malawi
Thank you for reading!
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