If You Wanna Switch Seats, We Could
A new Verbatim Performance Lab (VPL) project featuring 60+ teenagers from schools around the U. S. that take on a verbatim performance of a section of the first 2020 Biden/Trump debate moderated by Chris Wallace is debuting in a virtual festival on April 17th.
After the first contentious debate between President Trump and then Presidential Democratic Nominee Joe Biden, there was much discussion around the childlike behavior of the two men. As reported by Politico, Alex Castellanos of ABC News described it, “Apparently, I tuned into the wrong debate. I saw children debating, interrupting, calling each other names, never listening to dad.”
If You Wanna Switch Seats, We Could puts the words and gestures of Biden, Trump, and Wallace in the bodies and voices of teenagers to explore what happens to an audience’s perception of the interactions during this debate when younger and different bodied actors take on these roles?
VPL Director, Joe Salvatore, VPL Education and Outreach Coordinator, Lilly Stannard, and Education and Outreach Intern Lucy Medeiros began working collaboratively with teachers from 12 middle and high schools across the U.S. who began meetings and rehearsals in early February of this year. As an entry point into the investigation, the team began exploring what young actors discover about the candidates and the moderator when they take on their speech and gestural patterns, word for word and gesture for gesture, through verbatim performance? The result is a culminating virtual event to be shared publicly on April 17th, just ahead of Biden’s first 100 days in office, and featuring each school’s investigation, moderated discussion with special guests and student actors, and facilitated audience discussion.
“When I saw that journalists were saying that Biden and Trump behaved like children during this debate, I thought it would be interesting to consider what the interactions might look like performed by young people, and to learn from those young people about what they discover about the men through their performances,” says Joe Salvatore, VPL’s founder, Director, and the co-creator of 2017’s Her Opponent, a similar performed investigation of the 2016 Trump-Clinton debates, but with gender-reversed casting that enjoyed an Off Broadway run and garnered an Off Broadway Alliance Award nomination for Best Unique Theatrical Experience. “Based on what I’ve seen in rehearsals so far, and what teachers are reporting to our team,” adds Salvatore, “these young people have lots of insights to share on April 17th, and I can’t wait to learn from them.”
VPL is a project of the Program in Educational Theatre, Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions in NYU’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development.
See the full schedule of the April 17th event below. Admission to each session is free, open to the public, and by registration HERE.
IF YOU WANNA SWITCH SEATS, WE COULD, APRIL 17th SCHEDULE:
Session 1, 10:30 AM Eastern Time
Featuring performed investigations created by The Chapin School (NY), The Knox School (NY), Westtown School (PA)
Session 2, 12:30 PM Eastern Time
Featuring performed investigations created by Lady Bird Johnson Middle School (TX) & United Nations International School (NY)
Session 3, 2:30 PM Eastern Time
Featuring performed investigations created by Bentley School (CA), New York Institute for Collaborative Education (NY), Ramapo High School (NY)
Session 4, 4:30 PM Eastern Time
Featuring performed investigations created by Appoquinimink High School (DE), Middletown High School (DE), CATA (NC), Deerfield High School, (IL)
