In 2007 I saw some of the filming for No Mi Che’s graduation piece from NICA (National Institute of Circus Arts) in Centre Place, Melbourne Australia. At the time Centre Place was a dead end alley in Melbourne’s CBD filled with rubbish bins and some of the best street art in Melbourne. The performance was one of the most unusual responses to Melbourne’s street art that I have seen. I have since tracked down the video – it is now called “Oroborus”.
I saw the performance on Wednesday, 1st November 2007. There was evidence; paint splatters on the walls, of something like this happening before. There have been at least two other previous performances, as recorded by the yellow and green dresses on display; I saw the yellow performance and my colleagues in the building above the alley report on the first performance months earlier.
There was a sign up to announce the 1pm performance, “What comes around goes around” by Alley Rat productions. There was a large crowd to watch this performance, too large for me to get a good view; there were even punks sitting on the large garbage bins in the alley to get a better view.
“She is a good dancer.” One of the punks remarked.
“Do you like this because of the wet t-shirt?” Asked other punk.
“It is wet and it is art.” Replied the first punk.
There was a lot of red; there was a canvas bag camping shower dripping with red paint along with the dozens of hula-hoops. Again there were paper or canvas sheets attached to the walls to record the paint splatters.
The dancer spun her hula-hoops, danced and painted on the rubbish bins in white paint. The performance ended when a bucket of white paint was thrown on the dancer by one of her assistants; the crowd applauded and parted as she walked through them.
Black Mark 