You can listen to Erasure Island here.
Erasure Island is a set of connected spoken word poetry pieces which all focus on the working class experiences of bisexual/pansexual/queer erasure.
This is a piece which provides a very personal experience and does it excellently. The entire performance has a personal and visceral feeling to it, managing to give every line a sonic and emotional gravity. 1990s Chris performs this poetry with a real vulnerability and power. Never missing a beat as he seamlessly slides between monologue, poetry and spoken word, Chris’ consistent flows makes the brash and arrhythmic entries of the ‘The Man’ (Jamie Thrasivoulou), a stand-in for multiple different men throughout the piece, even more striking and threatening in his interruptions. Throughout the piece, Liz Purnell brings in subtle and impactful music and sound design, which always feels like it fits and creates an atmosphere, but is never overbearing or too on-the-nose.
Erasure Island is very focused in its scope, drawing upon the experiences of five bisexual/pansexual/queer people to create a singular slice-of-life experience. It hits these notes perfectly, portraying the everyday anxieties of queer people in a way that’s really affecting. Where this piece shines is in the way that Chris manages to subtly link the personal to broader notions and societal issues without ever losing sight of the human experiences. He consistently and powerfully challenges our culture’s restrictive and binary notions of sexuality and identity throughout the piece
In Erasure Island, the personal and the political combine to create a powerful expression of queer experience.
We also interviewed the writer of Erasure Island, 1990's Chris, and you can find that here.
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