Community With Shared Differences: Solo Performance in Pat Kinevane’s Silent and Panti’s A Woman in Progress

Abstract

Solo performance is a theatrical form which has been increasingly popular in contemporary Irish theatre with the rise of individualism. This paper takes the works of two representative solo performers in contemporary Irish theatre, Pat Kinevane and Panti (Rory O’Neill) as examples, trying to discuss how the form of solo performance is applied by the two performers to create an intermediate space for the marginalized groups to find their distinctive voices and for the audience to identify with the “other”, so as to build up a community that respects differences. While at the same time, the two performers use postdramatic strategies to admonish the audience to take a step back to reexamine the constructiveness of community and performativity of identity. By addressing the significance of solo performance in contemporary Irish theatre, this paper calls for the diversification of not only subjects but also forms in contemporary Irish theatre.