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JOAQUIN PHOENIX’S DONNER DANCE PARTY

Joaquin Phoenix’s Donner Dance Party (2009-10), live performance, 23 min

Rocksbox Fine Art, Portland, OR (2019) / LiveWork, San Francisco, CA (2010)

Performed as Joaquin Phoenix, this conceptual hip-hopera details the ill-fated 1846 journey of the Donner Party, a group of pioneers traveling by wagon train who were trapped for the winter in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It is a historical point of contention as to how exaggerated their resorting to cannibalism has been. Told through a combination of lyrics, stand-up comedy, monologue, and horribly Photoshopped overhead projections, the performance coincided with the theatrical release of Phoenix’s mockumentary I’m Still Here. For the San Francisco performance, a zine containing the performance’s lyrics plus an essay titled “Beards, White Rap Music, and Hyperreality” was released. Additionally, musician Brandon Bosch joined on live bass guitar as Bill the Butcher from Gangs of New York for no reason other than it seemed like that movie probably took place around the same time as the Donner Party’s trip.