fundraising below 14th street
April 30, 2008 6:07 pm
The lives of performance artists and socialites have little overlap. For one thing, the former group isn’t as familiar with the fundraising formula as the latter. This was amply proved by Casey Spooner, performance artist and one half of Fischerspooner, who took his role on the committee of artists’ collective the Wooster Group’s fundraising benefit in earnest. "Wow, e-mail really works," said Spooner, raffle clipboard in hand, as a slew of his invitees arrived. "I asked as many people as I could and a lot of them came, which is impressive." When told that the average committee member at more laissez-faire philanthropic events does little more than write a check and show up in borrowed eveningwear, Spooner added, "But this is the Wooster Group. Everything is taken seriously." The festivities included a performance of "La Didone," which was actually a hybrid opera mash-up of Francesco Cavalli’s classic opera and Mario Bava’s cult-classic film "Planet of the Vampires" that had one performer in a pig mask and strap-on sex toy. Taking it all in were some serious and feisty folk: DJ duo Andrew Andrew, Michael Stipe, Yesim Ak, Arden Wohl, and Genevieve Jones. After a dinner prepared by Jennifer Rubell and Melia Marden, Wooster Group icon Elizabeth LeCompte caught up with collected friends and family. "We’re taking this piece back on the road, to Europe," she said of "La Didone" ’s next stops in Berlin, Lisbon, and other cities. "But let’s not talk about that. I love to travel and it’s part of the job, but I do miss home every once in a while."
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