I entered mainstage area for Scaffold Room not quite knowing what to expect, and I left it not quite knowing what I just saw but nevertheless sure that I did not enjoy it. Had I known what those 90 minutes held in store for me, I am not sure I would have had the willpower to sit through it.
But let me stop myself from being too dour right off of the bat- let me talk about something I did like. The two performers, whether or not I was able to follow what they were doing, were obviously very passionate about this performance, and very skilled as well. The stage presence that the first woman had when she was performing in the Amy Winehouse wig was undeniable; the way that the second woman danced around the space was energetic and certainly eye-catching. Every movement they made seemed deliberate and calculated, even a moment that should be as simple as stripping off ones pants or jumping on a bed. In addition, the impromptu dance session with the three men at the very end was fun to watch (the most fun I had in the entire duration, I might add). Despite not understanding the point of them and their routine, it was still entertaining to see them dance. With a background in technical theater, I was very impressed with the technical aspects of Scaffold Room. The projection of the videos as part of the multimedia aspect was well done, not taking away from the performer standing in front of us all but instead coexisting with her. The eponymous scaffold room itself was excellently crafted, if I do say so myself; the scaffold room was the only type of backdrop or set piece needed for the performance. At the very least, all that can be said.
Unfortunately, there is little else that I can praise about this performance. Aside from the three men dancing at the end, whose presence seemed to make no sense in relation to the rest of the performance, Scaffold Room was not a pleasant experience. It left me uncomfortable, and not due to it raising any unpleasant truths or serious questions to think about. It made me uncomfortable because it was hard to identify or follow along with any ideas within it aside from Hurricane Sandy, anal sex, and some man named Peter within the narrative. The piece either confused or bored me, depending upon which exact moment in time it was- and I know I wasn’t alone. Upon the occasional glance around the audience, I saw many people looking baffled or asleep in their chairs, only to be woken up by what had to be about two minutes of someone screaming.
This piece was either over my head, or just genuinely unpleasant. Giving it the benefit of the doubt, I’m going to assume it was the latter. I did not understand nor did I enjoy Scaffold Room. I am sure someone out there enjoyed it, but maybe it was just not my cup of scaffolding.

Mary Yanez