Tania Camara
Oreo
jump → access · about · artist · reviews · credits · websites · Updated 17 Jan 2022
Presented by STUN + Word of Warning
Oreo, coconut, Bounty Bar — micro-aggressions used to disempower a black person deemed to be ‘acting white’.
Donning a camouflage of Oreo-filling, Tania explores the masks we wear to put our heads above the parapet in a climate of systemic racism.
Access
Time: Friday 15 October 2021, 7.30pm to approximately 8.30pm.
Location: STUN Studio at Z-arts, 335 Stretford Road, Manchester, M15 5ZA
We kindly ask audience members to socially distance and wear masks.
Ticketing: book a ticket on eventbrite, Pay What You Decide via PayPal.
With STUN Studio’s capacity reduced by half for social distancing, you can alternatively see Oreo at Oldham Library on Wednesday 20 October, 7pm.
Age Advisory: 16+ (parental/guardian discretion).
Content Warnings: includes an archive recording of a speech by Diane Abbott where she uses a term that may offend, for specific warnings please click here.
Features: live + recorded audio, spoken word, and choreographed movement.
For specific access queries please get in touch by emailing info@habmcr.org
About
A semi-autobiographical solo about being a successfully educated black woman within western society, Oreo interrogates racial micro-aggressions and their effect on mental health within private and public personas — focusing on public figures such as British MP Diane Abbott + Portuguese politician Joacine Katar Moreira.
Exploring the racial term ‘Oreo’ in relation to experiences of episodic racism within higher education and employment, Tania challenges the notion of whitening her physical and phenomenal self to achieve success in society.
Oreo developed from, and is inspired by, difficult conversations and the complexities of what it means to be black in Great Britain. As a black EU national living in the UK, Tania uses Oreo to investigate the mechanisms of survival black women use to protect themselves and endure the current hostile times.
Artist
A Manchester-based solo performance artist, Tania works across devised theatre, dance, site-specific, live art, installation, video + photography. A graduate of the University of Amsterdam with an MA, she uses her cultural heritage, past experiences, research, and the interdisciplinary structure of Batuku (including singing, dancing, drums + spoken word).
Tania’s current practice focuses on personal accounts of memory, collective and ancestral, to uncover her racial and cultural identity; the concept of self and other; belonging and the black performing body.
Tania is a member of In Between Time’s Creative Exchange Lab + The Lowry’s Class of 2020.
Reviews
★★★★ A tour de force of a performance …utterly compelling.
— The Grouchy Critic on Oreo at HOME
Captivating and thought provoking. Food for thought.
— Number 9 Reviews on Oreo at HOME
Brave thoughtful piece… Gutsy, moving… Unsettling and joyful.
— Audience Response to Oreo Variations
Credits
Creator, Performer, Producer: Tania Camara
Dance Mentor: Pape Ibrahima N’diaye (a.k.a. Kaolack)
Director: Peader Kirk
Original Oreo Lighting Designer: Kamini Patel
Image by Ricardo Vilela at Sagitta Media.
Oreo commissioned by STUN (Sustained Theatre Up North), developed with the support of HOME, Divergency + hÅb. Supported using public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England. The Oreo Suite, a digital version, supported by In Between Time’s Seed Fund for artists.
Websites
taniacamara.com · Tania on Facebook · Tania on Insta · @TaniaCamara2