Stacy Makishi on Bull: The True Story
January 24, 2008
Rich Jevons talks to Hawaii-born Stacy Makishi, an artist who works in a variety of media including site-specific installations, video, new writing, physical theatre and live art. Her latest work, ‘Bull: The True Story’ is inspired by the film Fargo.
What particularly interested you in the film Fargo to make it a trigger for the piece?
Initially I was interested in the film because I’m obsessed with Steve Buscemi, who plays a kidnapper. But also I liked the ‘noir’ overtones, the ‘dark humour’ in a white landscape, the countless (white) lies… snowjobs…etc. I love the snow. For a person from Hawaii, Fargo is a mighty contrast, it’s pretty ‘far to go’.
But after I began to discover the various thematic strands within my own show, I saw how Fargo provided a structure, a kind of overall map. Fargo is supposedly based upon a ‘True Story’…. which in fact is a lie. My research brought me to another lie, the one about Takako Konishi, the 28 year old Tokyo woman who supposedly was obsessed with the film Fargo, and supposedly died looking for the buried ransom money in the snow. But that story is also a lie.
What can we expect in terms of music?
The music was composed by Paul Clark (of Clod Ensemble) and the soundscape was created by Gareth Fry who has just won an Olivier Award for Best Sound Design at the National Theatre. These guys are awesome!
Are we left to decide what is fact and fiction for ourselves?
Yes. I’m sorry to say that this story is full of omissions, half lies and a whole lot of bull. The whole story is like a doughnut hole’s story. It’s defined by what’s missing. What’s missing is the (w)hole point of the story.. it’s a coming out story that is stuck in the middle.
www.leedsmet.ac.uk/arts
www.stacymakishi.com
6 & 7 February, Leeds Met Studio Theatre