I-Dare-U

I-DARE-U | Premiere: 2015, Clipa Theater

I’m things that break in third person
I’m not but what I am
Here and there
Plenty, all at the same time.

When she was born, Oryan Yohanan’s grandmother asked: ‘What was born?’ And when she was answered ‘A girl’, she casually responded with ‘Oh well, next time a son, Amen.’ And so, in an instant, she determined that the female gender is worth less than the male. Understanding that being a woman is a flaw or a defect, Oryan chose to disconnect the personal and embody many identities.

I-DARE-U challenges, and sometimes breaks, gender roles and femininity rules. It presents a woman searching for the possibility to live peacefully with her different identities, and looking for the freedom of losing the desire to belong, by accepting herself as a “misfit”. The piece is multidisciplinary, using movement, body visual arts and text to manifest variety of ways through which one can identify and be heard. A clear sheet of recycled paper is being manipulated on stage, reflecting the destruction and reconstruction done on the body. And so, as the material is slowly decomposing, the body is revealed.

Press
“Oryan Yohanan has condensed emotional contents that cry to burst out, her body is an amazing tool and she has the courage to expose herself and to dive deeply into this creation, without taking any shortcuts. The result speaks for itself; the powerful experience of this piece follows you long after the lights go down.” – Ruth Eshel, Haaretz

“I-Dare-U” by Oryan Yohanan is a wonderful dance piece; original, calculated, emotional (not to say tormented) without any self pity nor sentimental fat” – Marit Ben-Israel, Happiness-City Blog