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Photo credit: Matt Steffen

Fringe optical overload with 'Forealism Tribe Origins'

More than any other review, I have been staring at a blank screen wondering how exactly to write about "Forealism Tribe Origins." As a group that self-describes as an "Inter-Dimensional Artist Duo," I really can’t think…

More than any other review, I have been staring at a blank screen wondering how exactly to write about “Forealism Tribe Origins.” As a group that self-describes as an “Inter-Dimensional Artist Duo,” I really can’t think of a better description for them. Their performance art piece, which mixes dancing, lights, bass-y house music, video, lasers and a strange three-part cube in the center of the stage, took me on a wild ride.

There is a plot that ties the whole thing together. I vaguely understood it as being the duo, Star Power and Soul Force, creating some kind of space tunnel to Earth and then partying. Whatever it was, the journey there and the subsequent dance-off provided a spectacle that will likely be unmatched at Cincinnati Fringe Festival 2018. I found myself giggling with joy every five minutes of this 50-minute performance, and if any of you want to go again, I probably would.

Trying to explain “Forealism Tribe Origins” to my Lyft driver after the show (it was pouring down rain, don’t judge me) for the 8 blocks to home, I struggled. I likened their outfits to the ghillie suits that snipers wear — that moss-and-sticks-and-leaves jumpsuit, except shiny and silver. With the lights and lasers playing on them, they sparkled and glowed, shone and faded, were electric. During the scenes where they danced on stage, I could not take my eyes off of them. It was entrancing in a way that utterly confused me.

 

Photo credit: Matt Steffen

If you’ve never seen a piece of performance art in your life, this is a good start. The audience got into it, there was a surprise ending, and at 50 minutes it’s the perfect length. I recommend adding “Forealism Tribe Origins” to your checklist for this season’s Fringe.

John David Back is a Cincinnati native who lives and works in OTR. He’s an avid reader and a mediocre writer who loves the experience of art and beauty. Tell him what he should experience and send fan mail to johndavidback@gmail.com.