Settlements of dust fall on the expanse of a passing afternoon. On a day like today, where there is no sun, the day is only passing. Given the debris on the windowsill, it’s likely that a new genre of days are on the way. By which, I don’t mean spring, but new days altogether. Some new, unfounded name, and in essence, unnameable altogether. Nothing is here for the purpose of use. Utility is a sign of the times. Efficacy, stupidity. A pink shirt draped on the horizon as if to gesture toward a sunset. A gesture is all it can ever amount to. A gesture toward allegory, a gesture toward rhythm, a gesture toward the artfulness of our age in general. The punch has been beaten back with a stick. In effect, the punch fails to exist, and therefore, there is no race toward it. A divine mystery, unfolding in a Shell gas station. The man at the counter is the only one saying things he believes. The canicular days are upon us.

A dance in three movements, a tragedy in three acts, a presentation in crisis, Scoring the End examines the complex, nebulous, tragic, and romantic terrain of our contemporary theater. Created and performed by Rodney Murray, Scoring the End attempts to generate numerous frictions in our art, culture, and politics, by asking how the 21st-century, post-pandemic body is moving and being moved by the world.

For ages 18+

Interested in a not-necessarily-romantic way to connect over art? Select the Blind Date ticket at checkout and Cannonball will pair you with another audience member for a pre- and post-show experience. Blind Date is only available for this show on Tue, Sep 20, 2022 6:00 PM. Check out https://www.cannonballfestival.org/blinddate for more information.

This show is presented as part of Cannonball Festival, Philly’s artist-centered performance hub, packing in 65+ full length shows and 300 performances in two nearby venues. Discover risk-taking theater, dance, circus, music, and comedy alongside a vibrant garden bar with a free nightly cabaret, pop-up events, workshops, artist talkbacks, and more. September 1–30 at the Maas Building (1320 N 5th St) and Icebox Project Space (1400 N American St). Learn more at cannonballfestival.org.

Content Considerations

This performance contains brief graphic language.

Health & Safety

Proof of vaccination is required to attend this event, and masks must be worn for the duration of the performance. Audience members will be asked to show proof of vaccination before entering the venue. Both digital and physical proof of vaccination are accepted. Please plan accordingly.

About the Artist

Rodney Murray is a Philadelphia-based, multidisciplinary artist, writer, and performer. Interrogating the fleeting contemporary moment with urgency, his work cruises through precarious terrains of the in-between and underneath to search for neglected or undiscovered narratives and myths of the present. Laboring to collapse the space between mediums, his work is located at the explosive intersections of dance, performance, theater, film, and Freudian psychoanalysis.