Harsh Cacophonies I & II

by Kev Berry

Harsh Cacophonies I & II is a full-length monologue about the intersection of queerness and the things that hold us back from attaining an impossible perfection. Carefully balancing autobiography, spoken word, standup, and storytelling, Berry’s ritual of queer performance explores how we each learn to view our physical selves in the mirror and the constant struggle to to find a sense of the sacred among the...

Harsh Cacophonies I & II is a full-length monologue about the intersection of queerness and the things that hold us back from attaining an impossible perfection. Carefully balancing autobiography, spoken word, standup, and storytelling, Berry’s ritual of queer performance explores how we each learn to view our physical selves in the mirror and the constant struggle to to find a sense of the sacred among the infinite and unbearable noise.

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Harsh Cacophonies I & II

Recommended by

  • Abraham Johnson: Harsh Cacophonies I & II

    A gymnastic, verbose, thorough dissection of the boundary between gay intimacy/sex, I'm floored at how vivid and wide-reaching this one-person play is. Rodgers and Hammerstein one moment, then Rumi, then spinning into autobiography and love letters to the moon??? Go off! Berry captures the (frightening, almost violent) rituals of gay rejections based on inhuman body standards, then twists the bitterness with an eye towards the transcendental self. A pastiche of gay mythology and theology-- Whitman and Tim Miller and those horny holiday chain texts all rolled into one. To summarize is to reduce...

    A gymnastic, verbose, thorough dissection of the boundary between gay intimacy/sex, I'm floored at how vivid and wide-reaching this one-person play is. Rodgers and Hammerstein one moment, then Rumi, then spinning into autobiography and love letters to the moon??? Go off! Berry captures the (frightening, almost violent) rituals of gay rejections based on inhuman body standards, then twists the bitterness with an eye towards the transcendental self. A pastiche of gay mythology and theology-- Whitman and Tim Miller and those horny holiday chain texts all rolled into one. To summarize is to reduce, but gorgeously structured and wildly impressive.

Development History

  • Type Workshop, Organization The Tank, Year 2019
  • Type Workshop, Organization The Tank, Year 2018

Production History

  • Type Professional, Organization The Tank, Year 2020

Awards

  • Princess Grace Award
    New Dramatists and the Princess Grace Foundation
    Semi-Finalist
    2022