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Body
Blows
Six
Performances
Tim Miller
Photographs by Dona Ann McAdams, with a foreword by Tony Kushner
Living
Out: Gay and Lesbian Autobiographies
"Tim Miller sings that song of
the self which interrogates, with explosive, exploding, subversive
joy and freedom, the constitution and borderlines of selfhood.
. . . You think you don't need to hear such singing? You do! You must!
Read the book!"
—Tony
Kushner, playwright of Angels in America, from the foreword
Hailed for his humor and passion, the internationally acclaimed
performance artist Tim Miller has delighted, shocked, and emboldened
audiences all over the world. Body Blows gathers six
of Miller's best-known performances that chart the sexual, spiritual,
and political topography of his identity as a gay man: Some
Golden States, Stretch Marks, My Queer Body, Naked Breath, Fruit
Cocktail, and Glory Box. In Body Blows,
Tim Miller leaps from the stage to the page, as each performance
script is illustrated with striking photographs and accompanied
by Miller's notes and comment.
This book explores
the tangible body blows—taken and given—of Miller's
life and times as explored in his performances: the queer-basher's
blow, the sweet blowing breath of a lover, the below-the-belt
blow of HIV/AIDS, the psychic blows from a society that disrespects
the humanity of lesbian and gay relationships. Miller's performances
are full of the put-up-your-dukes and stand-your-ground of such
day-to-day blows that make up being gay in America.
 Tim Miller is the author of the
book Shirts & Skin, 1001 Beds, and his performance texts have
appeared in the play collections O Solo Homo and Sharing
the Delirium. He teaches performance at the University of
California, Los Angeles, School of Theater and is co-founder
of Performance Space 122 in New York City and Highways Performance
Space in Santa Monica, California. In 1990, Miller was awarded
a solo performer fellowship by the National Endowment for the
Arts and became known as one of the "NEA Four" when
the grant was withdrawn under political pressure. He lives in
Los Angeles with his partner Alistair McCartney.
Dona Ann
McAdams
is a photographer whose work has appeared in the New York
Times, London Times, Time, Stern, Aperture, and many other
publications, and in numerous museums, including the Museum of
Modern Art in New York.
Media & bookseller inquiries regarding review copies, events, and interviews can be directed to the publicity department at publicity@uwpress.wisc.edu or (608) 263-0734. (If you want to examine a book for possible course use, please see our Course Books page. If you want to examine a book for possible rights licensing, please see Rights & Permissions.)
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February
2002
272 pp. 6 x 9
33 b/w photographs
Visit Tim Miller's website or read his blog.
"The power
of Tim Miller's performances lies in his sharp mind and gentle
heart, his capacity for being angry and funny and self-critical
all at once. One senses immediately that he can be trusted, even
when he leads us into unknown territory. His passion is utterly
contagious."
—Armistead Maupin, author of Tales of
the City
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