The Play Power Goes Essay

Power Goes
The term “power” exists as a vague and perpetually changing concept. Throughout history, power has become synonymous with physical strength, leadership, sophistry, etc. In the dance-theatre performance “Power Goes,” the Seldoms uses elements of movement, texts, and imagery to support one idea: Proper use of power can enhance individual social status and improve personal rights. Nevertheless, the abuse of power can lead to
In the play “Power goes”, The Seldoms takes Lyndon B. Johnson as an example to define power as a political weapon. President LBJ was adept at utilizing his power for political gains. He was well known for his particular gesture in conversations. For instance, when LBJ was having conversations with other politicians, his body tended to approach closer and leaned on them, invading their personal space. If got overly agitated, anxious, or eager to express his opinion, LBJ would point at the person in front of him and jab continuously in order to dominate the conversation. The politicians who encountered him found LBJ’s body languages very aggressive and oppressive, for they felt an intangible pressure imposed on them. Thus they often compromised to LBJ’s commands. Coercive body language was one of LBJ 's special techniques to turn people under his manipulation. Throughout the show, the dancers imitated LBJ’s forceful body language by their dance movements.
In one scene, a lady compliments another lady’s hairstyle

There was shifting of the background images while the dancers are shifting the dancing movements. While dancers are giving out some movements with lots of strength or force, the background screen also displaces Lyndon Baines Johnson’s images and plays a repeated voice record of his speech, especially the most famous one “power is where power goes”; its also the one catches the show’s topic the