Misty Moment

2014

Misty Moment was a collaborative performance between Milton and professional actor, Tara Travis that aimed to explore the relationship between cinematic constructions of sentimentality and the embodiment of affect. Sitting across from one another, the two performers held eye contact while repetitively singing along to a karaoke track of the Bette Midler pop ballad, “Wind Beneath My Wings”. Agreeing to stop repeating the song only once one of them had produced an authentic tear, the performers traded verses of the song while intermittently operating a smoke machine that filled the room with mist. A live video feed of each performer’s face was projected on the wall behind them, allowing the audience to further anticipate the welling up of emotion. Once the tear was released it was contained in a small vial that stood between the performers. The tear continues to be archived in the vial.

Performance, Live Streamed Video 

Performed
Not Sent Letters Cabaret, VIVO Media Arts, 2014
Curated by Jeremy Todd

Performers
Elizabeth Milton
Tara Travis

Music
Wind Beneath My Wings, performed by Bette Midler

Documentation
Sebnem Ozpeta