Interview w/ Joseph Keckler @ Knight Arts Blog
On Saturday, Dec. 12, performance artist Joseph Keckler staged a four-hour presentation of a work-in-progress, “Let Me Die,” at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit. “Let Me Die” is a performance piece incorporating the death scenes from dozens of operas in the public domain (all performed by Keckler, who has an impressive three-octave range), as well as storytelling, video and a great deal of humorous asides. The work-in-progress has been developed intensively as part of Keckler’s residency at University of Michigan Stamps School of Art & Design, during which he collaborated with students in a music video class to create a fully realized and hilarious piece of modern opera, “Strangers From the Internet.” This was just one of many elements of the performance at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, which is the recipient of multiple Knight grants.
I followed up with Keckler with questions about his unusual process and the politics of opera in a modern world.