An Evening of Meat (and than some…)
When I was invited to preview “An Evening of Meat” I wasn’t sure what to expect, it was billed as “… a unique and
provocative dinner installation: a feast of femininity where expressive dance and indulgent food meet to
thoroughly inundate all the senses…” However, I’m always game for new things and I do like immersive dining experiences.
The event is taking place at The Vaults in Waterloo and if you haven’t been yet, it’s worth going to a show there, all under the vaults, very atmospheric and to get there you have to walk through ‘graffiti ally’. There were a couple of graffiti artists at work as I walked past.
We whiled away the time while the performers were getting ready in the bar of The Vaults which had a variety of wire female figure sculptures as decor. Soon they called us and we went up the stairs to dinner.
I think you really have to experience this dinner to fully appreciate what Kate March and her all female creative collective, I AM, are trying to do. According to the press release,”…this is a powerful conceptual dining experience that explores the all-fours position. As guests sink their teeth into a six course dinner, they are confronted with performers struggling to reach the vertical position. The dancers explore various aspects of the on-all-fours position, such as vulnerability, strength, stability, sensuality, power, domestication, and unbridled wildness. In this exploration in femininity, the audience and performer build unique relationship, and as the diner becomes part of the dancer’s struggle, screaming for her to stand up,she in turn destabilises their gaze and becomes more than just a piece of meat on the table…”
I’ll let the photos speak for themselves….
The menu was prepared by Michelin trained Head Chef Chavdar Todorov. There are 6 courses and while it was tasty, most of my attention was focused on the performers on the table in front of me.
Afterwards, I had the opportunity to chat with Kate and some of the performers. I asked Kate what she hoped we, the audience, got from the performance. She said the show is about the power of the female body, there are moments of terror and moments of delight as well as the irony of appreciating the performers feats of strength (they did not stop for 2 and a half hours!) and at the same time seeing them as ‘pieces of meat’.
Londoners seem to take a bit of time to get into the show, Kate said, but once they do get into it, they are receptive to the company’s message. Here it is seen as a night out but she said in New York, it’s very much seen as part of the underground art scene.
An Evening of Meat is currently running at The Vaults Waterloo until June 2nd, 2018. Prices start at £35 which I think is quite reasonable for dinner and a thought provoking show. I enjoyed it once I got into it, I’m definitely more of a Londoner then a New Yorker, that’s for sure!