the world won’t listen

Project Partner:
National Sculpture Factory

Contact:
www.corkcaucus.org
www.nationalsculpturefactory.com

Date: 4 – 5 July 2005
Venue: Granary Theatre

Project Description:
But don't forget the songs
That made you cry
And the songs that saved your life
Yes, you're older now
And you're a clever swine
But they were the only ones who ever stood by you

‘the world won't listen’ was a karaoke for the shy, the dissatisfied, the narcissists, bedroom-superstars, and anyone who ever wished they could be someone else for a night. Based on the Smiths' 1987 compilation album, the project was originally produced in 2004 in Bogotá with local musicians who re-recorded every track off the album, note-for-note, and fans who performed their favourite songs in an improvised film set.

For Collins, whilst karaoke is a devalued entertainment format, it nonetheless provides the vestiges of possibility for individual expression, the promise of becoming someone else, and the precise agony of self-fulfillment and self-limitation.