Prickly Paradigm, 2024 

Rhubarb Festival at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre

A playful yet pointed examination of gender binaries and societal expectations, this performance reimagines protest through the language of intimacy and play. Wearing a pin-studded clay mask that embodies both protection and vulnerability, the performer engages with balloons in a series of actions that challenge conventional expressions of political resistance. Through durational presence and careful attention to gesture, the work proposes gentler forms of rebellion that dissolve rigid categorical thinking. The tension between the sharp pins and fragile balloons creates a metaphorical space where binary oppositions—soft/hard, passive/aggressive, personal/political—begin to unravel, suggesting new possibilities for embodied activism.

I wear pretty dresses, but I talk like a boy,
With hair short, prickly and spikey,
I'm only five, but I've got lots to say,
Why can't I just be me, in my own special way?


"Why do you talk like a boy?" they always ask,
"Are you a boy?" they wonder, up to their task.
But I'm just me, a little confused,
Why do I need labels, can't they be excused?


It feels funny inside, like little spikes,
When they label me, it's not what I like.
I'm not just a boy or a girl, you see,
I'm like a cactus, wild and free!


So I'll stand tall, in my prickly paradigm,
No need for labels, I'm doing just fine.
I'm me, just me, bursting their bubbles, that's all I need,
A cactus kid, planting my own little seed!

vridhhi chaudhry 2025 © All rights reserved
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