2020 | United Arab Emirates | Experimental

Alone in a Crowd (Fake Joy)

  • 10 mins
  • Director | Farah Al Qasimi

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Alone In a Crowd (King of Joy) is a ten-minute improvised piano performance, where Al Qasimi appears dressed in a clown costume that she had bought from the Dragon Mart -, a Chinese Mall in Dubai - known for selling fake products. In the performance, Al Qasimi reflected on the vast spectrum of human emotions and the idea of manufactured happiness. She often explores how clowns and comedians can perform an "alchemy of sadness" that transcends into humour. At the beginning of her performance, Al Qasimi seeks to convey how to match her facial expressions and gestures with the rhythms of the music to bring an exaggerated sense of theatricality. There are moments in the video where Al Qasimi's authentic expressions emerges, allowing the viewers to try, carefully and meticulously, to discover the moments that are mimed and the moments that are real.

Image: Courtesy of The Third Line

Clown Improvisation Performance Emotion Mime Theatricality