THE RETURN OF CONEY ISLAND RITUAL CABARET!!

March 31, April 1 and April 2

We invite you to SUBMIT A PROPOSAL... guidelines here!

(Deadline February 1, 2023)

This marks ICL's 5th year probing the fantastical partnership of ritual and entertainment on Coney Island USA's (CIUSA) stage. ICL again is assembling an array of performance artists, musicians, magicians, puppeteers, sideshow performers, poets, dancers... tasked with presenting original works that define "ritual cabaret" though the lens of their own particular aesthetic, discipline and lineage (seeking 5-15 minute pieces).

The history of the Coney Island Ritual Cabaret Festival is informed by dancer/choreographer Tatsumi Hijikata who in the 1950's originated butoh with his ensemble of burlesque dancers in an effort to defy and subvert authority, including conventional notions of dance, thereby seeking transformation -- on the personal, societal and human level.

Inspired by this historical reference, in its call for proposals, ICL challenges artists to deconstruct and reinvent their particular art form, whatever it might be. We asked: If the goal is TRANSFORMATION -- of the self, of society, of humanity -- what will it take to bring this about? Is it possible to invent a new genre? What is Ritual Cabaret to you?

Cabaret, burlesque, vaudeville, and circus sideshow have a long & storied history in Coney Island, and Coney's rich legacy of amusement, community, and innovation make CIUSA the perfect venue to explore the boundaries of ritual & entertainment.

CHECK OUT THESE FANTASTIC FESTIVAL PROFILES IN REVIEWFIX AND NITELIFEEXCHANGE!!