MKA | 2020

MKA presents

Being Dead
(Don Quixote)

by Kerith Manderson-Galvin

After Cervantes, Kathy Acker, and Barbie TV Adverts.

A dangerous quest of literary theft, build-your-own identity and post-anarchy. Being Dead (Don Quixote) steals from Cervantes, Barbie™ and instant porn. Don Quixote is the idol you deserve.

Kerith Manderson-Galvin’s sensational and ever evolving signature work has alienated and captivated audiences and now debuts in Sydney at KXT. Infamous Queer Femme Kerith Manderson-Galvin (AKA Unofficial Kerith Fan Club; Green Screen, SANS HOTEL/MTC; don’t bring lulu, UHT; Side Effect, MKA; 22 Short Plays, MKA) rips off the original rip-off artist Kathy Acker et al. in this ongoing project purposefully rewritten to Manderson-Galvin’s own shifting identity.

“I still don’t have a clear idea of what my voice is.” – Kerith after Kathy Acker
“Thou hast seen nothing yet.” Cervantes

This show is not suitable for children, for teenagers, or for a good deal of adults.

RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE:
Unicorns, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn, Gypsy

Duration: 60 minutes, no interval

Categories: Theatre, live performance, dance, autofiction

Warnings: Contains extreme coarse language, adult themes, horse play

Sydney (2018) Reviews

It’s not easy.. not a regular play.. won’t be to everyone’s tastes.. might not even charm you.. denies the audience relief.. almost hostile – but, a real beauty.  ✮✮✮✮
C Tongue | TimeOut Magazine

Wonderfully unusual.. perversely delightful.. something magical.. the Genius
S Wrong | Suzy Goes See

This performance and the enormity of the intellect behind it pave the way for unheard-of combinations.. Any MKA performance will tease your intellect and invite a stretch, but this one in particular is thrilling to those seeking an opportunity to extend into a thing.  Beautiful theatre!
L Thatcher | Lisa Thatcher

Utterly engaging.. Fascinating..  Challenging.. Delightful.. Moments of true beauty… Unconventional work is exactly what we’ve come to expect from MKA.
E Caldwell | Weekend Notes

Delicate.. Deeply emotional.. A new form.. it exists to make one feel.
L Ulmer | Sydney Arts Guide

An armoury of theatrical skills… I was reminded (kinda) of Nature Theatre of Oklahoma, and of Justin Shoulder… 
K Jackson | KJ’s Theatre Diary

Perth (2016) Reviews

A glorious mess with a serious purpose.
H Bower | Daily Review

An elusive reality… Defies convention and, by most measures, theatrical sense and makes its mark in way you might not expect and can’t anticipate
D Zampatti | The West Australian

YES. Deconstructivist, post-structuralist, feminist, transgressive, bizarre, confused/confusing, non-linear, provocative, brave, raw… and fascinating.
C Binford | Perth Arts Live

Melbourne (2015) Reviews

From the highest of highs, to the lowest of lows, it was impossible to disengage.. A breath of fresh air.. An amazing performer… Manderson-Galvin’s sharp wit leaves most performers for dead.
J Lewis | MelbourneArtsFashion

A refreshing female voice, like Winterson and Woolf – like Orlando meets Sexing the Cherry.
Tennille Moisel (Director of Midsumma Festival)

FIVE STARS Powerful; playful; making way for a whole new language!
Casey Jenkins (Casting off My Womb, Body of Work)

Kerith is one to watch. Fragile & Ballsy. Intelligent & Ditsy. Sexy & Gawky. The Whole Package.
Maude Davey (My Life in the Nude; The Burlesque Hour)

A humorous, entertaining romp.. leaves you unsettled, the audience unsure whether to laugh or not..
S Liew | The Music

alternately brilliant and incoherent.. her writing is funny and clever, her performance absorbing… highly original brand of queer feminist clowning.
C Woodhead | The Age

Credits
KXT Mardi Gras Season 2018 | Kings Cross Theatre

Creation + Performance Kerith Manderson-Galvin
Additional Text Kathy Acker / Miguel de Cervantes / Barbie Commercials
Composer/Musician Jules Pascoe
Lighting Jason Crick
Scenography
 Kerith + Tobias Manderson-Galvin
Production MKA

Fringe World 2016 / Blue Room’s Summer Nights

Concept/Performance/Realisation Kerith Manderson-Galvin
Additional Text Kathy Acker / Cervantes / Barbie Ads
Live Musician Jules Pascoe
Production Management MKA
Stage Design / Set Painting
 Soma Garner
Projection/Puppet Design Tobias Manderson-Galvin
Sound Design Duane Morrison
Lighting Design Darren Lever

Premiere Season | Midsumma Festival 2015

Concept/Performance/Realisation Kerith Manderson-Galvin
Additional Text Kathy Acker / Cervantes / Amanda Bynes’ Twitter Feed
Additional Performers Rachel Zbukvic & Millicent O’Sullivan
Show Management Emily Edwards
Stage Design
 Soma Garner
Sound Design Duane Morrison
Lighting Design Darren Lever
Pupper Master Tobias Manderson-Galvin
Outside Eye (2013 Development) Mark Wilson

Media

“…all, or almost all, the plays that are popular now, imaginative works as well as historical ones, are known to be nonsense and without rhyme or reason, and despite this the mob hears them with pleasure and thinks of them and approves of them as good…”
― Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Don Quixote

Dates

ADELAIDE
THE RCC
Little Theatre
14 Feb – 15 Mar, 2020

SYDNEY
Kings Cross Theatre
Mardi Gras
6 – 10 Mar, 2018

PERTH

Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts
Summer Nights / Blue Room
Fringe World, January 2016

MELBOURNE
The Melba Spiegeltent
Midsumma Festival
Feb 2015


DEVELOPMENT
Guild Theatre
Melbourne University’s Union House Theatre
August, 2014
Winner: 2013 MUDfest Development Award from University of Melbourne’s Student Union.

Partners

Being Dead (Don Quixote) is a production of Theatre MK-Alpha and Unofficial Kerith Fan Club in association with Kings Cross Theatre, and Moonee Valley Council. Additional fundraising was supported through an Australian Cultural Fund campaign.

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