Roadside Attraction
“…from satire to real pain, with an eloquence that stays in the memory.”
–The New York Times
Inspired by family trips spent in our 1977 Coleman pop-up camper, Roadside Attraction stepped back in time to when Supertramp was on the radio, Connect Four was on the folding table, and frisky business was in the bunks.
Though I only knew her for a short time, my mother left quite an impression. I have vivid memories of her red Candies clapping on the linoleum floor and photos of her sunbathing in a cheetah print bathing suit on a matching blanket, her platinum blond wig blowing in the breeze.
My mother challenged the 70s suburbs of Ohio, living out her fashion whims by pulling them right out of the Cosmopolitan magazines she read while waiting for Jazzercise to start in the Rec Center.
Her larger-than-life persona inspired Roadside Attraction’s characters of Mom and her glamorous avatar, a songbird who lived out Mom’s fantasies through ‘70s pop hits. My story expanded to become a universal one, born from notions of motherhood and family dynamics experienced by all of us who collaborated to create the performance.
Full description and credits: thirdrailprojects.com
Feature: MANA SPOTLIGHT: Third Rail Projects Residency | Mana Contemporary | 2013
Photographs by Darial Sneed and Third Rail Projects