Sick

SICK, a new work by Phillip Adams, founder of Ballet Lab, in collaboration with self-proclaimed autistic artist Ryan New and visual artist Jake Preval, is playing as part of the 2022 Midsumma Festival. Together they have created a stunning, cacophonous piece of performative dance. They have also opened a much-needed discussion surrounding artists with disability and a ross generational work that questions the hot topic of ageism.

Adams and New both enter the space both dressed in graffiti-tagged leather jackets and ballet tights. They pose with cheeky grandeur and turn their back to the audience, hit their Hammond organ keys; immersed in their loud cacophonic beats, they deliberately disrupt our aural senses. Their dance performance is cataclysmic and jarring, offers visual contrast and provides audiences with altering and challenging persona dualities.

Sick attempts to blur the lines between ageing artists and artists with disability, providing an argument that questions the divide, when one would assume an artist is an artist, despite any so-called disabllity. Yet, Autism is a recognised condition that affects how a person thinks, feels, interacts with others, and experiences their environment. Common symptoms include difficulty with communication, social interaction obsessive interests and repetitive behaviours. You could easily argue the symptoms of autism equal artist, while also stating that no one can stop the ageing process.

The set design (Jake Preval) is decked out in contrasting colours - red carpet across the floor, lilac pleated curtains, along with a rolling set piece that is well-crafted into the performance - with one side posted with a blow up black and white image of male urinals dotted with light bulbs. Adams and New are playful and defiant - they work in unison yet have separate agendas. The care giver (Bo Svoronos) is the real deal - he carefully strides across the floor; he is more than a symbolic figure of strength and care; he is a grounding figure that stands between Adams and New.

Sick is an explorative performance piece that draws the creative line between ageing artist and artist with autism. It is no surprise cutting edge performer Phillip Adams has joined forces with New to explore the intrinsic meaning of what it is to just be an artist without the labels. His reputable much-loved shows are outrageously deconstructive, eccentric, and high camp and this show is no exception.

Flora Georgiou