Notes Towards Becoming a Spill, 2021
Performance, Performa Biennial
In Notes Towards Becoming a Spill, Shikeith stages an experimental opera that interlaces history, mythology, and autobiography to examine the complexities of transformation—both personal and collective. Situated along the elemental landscape of Rockaway Beach, the work employs the natural rhythms of ocean, tide, and sand as metaphors for cyclical change and psychic rebirth. Rooted in the theory of hauntology—the persistence of unresolved histories—the performance explores the spectral presence of African-American pasts, with particular attention to the affective and symbolic weight of the color blue. In collaboration with choreographer Morgan Bobrow-Williams, musician Rashad McPherson, costume designer Carlos Soto, and performers from New York’s queer community, Shikeith reconfigures dominant constructions of Black masculinity. The resulting performance offers a contemporary narrative shaped by the enduring legacies of American colonialism, proposing a vision of identity as fluid, haunted, and continuously in process.