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#6367

Gob Squad in "Western Society."

Photo by David Baltzer/bildbuehne.de.

DouglasPlus at REDCAT

Western Society

Sep 17–20, 2014

Venues Around L.A.

Western Society

United States Premiere

Gold stilettos, bucket loads of Ferrero Rocher, the least watched video on YouTube, a million years of human history condensed into 10 minutes. It’s a microcosm of the western world at a dinner table. The last supper of the self-obsessed us. And you, the audience, are invited to the banquet to watch and, some to partake. Gob Squad’s Western Society is a portrait of the world we live in, with the color and sound turned up to 11.

Gob Squad have found a microcosm of our entire civilization in a barely watched three-minute home video of a family karaoke party. Dressed in a look that can only be described as Paris Hilton wannabe meets bling casualty, the performers (with a few oh-so-lucky audience members) undertake a live reenactment of the video, standing in for the strangers on the screen known only as “lady with cake” or “remote control man.”

It’s all part of nothing less than a search for the essence of Western Society, a society where, just as in the YouTube video, everyone seems to be simultaneously together yet alone.

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The World premiere production of Western Society was originally produced by HAU Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin; Spielart Festival, Munich; and brut Wien, Vienna. The premiere was co-produced with House on Fire, with the support of Culture Programme of the European Union and Kulturverwaltung Berlin.

The British Council creates international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries, and builds trust between them worldwide. Working in more than 100 countries, it creates long-term relationships with the UK that provide cultural, diplomatic and economic benefits. With offices in Washington, New York and Los Angeles, it is re-energizing the transatlantic relationship through the arts, education, society and English. It develops young leaders’ networks and partners with international organizations to work on shared agendas.