Set in a neo-noire speakeasy, TRADE steals from 1920’s underground queer culture to explore gender expression in love and at war. Half immersive, walkthrough experience, half nightclub cabaret performance, the audience is asked to investigate their own erotic desires in a world where masculinity and femininity, class and power, are pushed and probed.
TRADE is a bar where opposites clash in a limbo state. The time period is part 1920’s, part apocalyptic future. The location is part seedy basement speakeasy, part cruising park. The aesthetic pulls from both classic film noir and more modern, edgy films such as“Sin City” and “Moonwalker,” from history and from the present day. Other points of reference are Cabaret, The Wild Party, and The Life.
Sonically, the music mashes the modern with the bygone. The 1920’s sound is achieved through Post-Modern Jukebox style arrangements of contemporary songs, and the modern sound is achieved through electro-swing music that samples vintage music.
Artist examples include Post-Modern Jukebox, Parov Stelar, Tape Five, St. Vincent, Hozier, Thievery Corporation, and Caravan Palace.
CHARACTERS
Daddy, a mafia-affiliated pimp, and his rough trade huslters: The Soldier, The Piers Worker, The Sailor, and the College Boy
Momma, a prominent drag-queen madame, and her girls: a rowdy group of femme boys with a bite.
The Husband: A middle class man leading a double life.
The Mafia Prince: The queer son of the kingpin mafia boss.
The Cop: He may seem wear the badge of the law, but everything is negotiable.
What begins as a walkabout immersive experience, with private rooms, booze, and cruising, migrates into the main club room for an evening of wild acts that turn the lyrics of each song on their head, exploring slices of life for the characters.
We explore the art and danger of the cruise is “WANNABE,” where three trade hustlers seduce and eventually rob The Husband to the sound of three Andrews Sisters-like singers.
In “LOVE FOOL,” our Mafia Prince holds the soldier hostage, who eventually succumbs to Stockholm Syndrome and falls for his captor.
The Sailor and The Husband explore gender expression in “NO DIGGITY” when the sailor has the masculine husband change into woman’s lingerie and become his sissy.
Set to St. Vincent’s “SALVALJE,” the latin piers man struggles with his sexual identity and acts against his religious upbringing.
In Hozier’s “WORK SONG,” a moment of tenderness, real love, is shared between a femme boy and his masculine lover.
Momma and Daddy fight over a new hustler recruit (an audience member) in “THAT BOY IS MINE,” exploring their own dangerous attraction to each other.
In “MAMBO RAP,” trade enjoys being Daddy’s sugar baby, later learning the cost that comes with being spoiled.
Every act is a way to get deeper into each character, and ultimately explore their complicated power dynamics. These acts are primarily danced, but may also include aerial.
