Wearing the parrot at the Pirate Ball was the first time I had worn both the poncho and the beak together and I was amazed by how well they worked together. The decision to paint the beak with natural colours was the right one, as it made the colours of the poncho that much more vibrant and vivid. The beak really pulled the whole spectacle together; individually the different elements are not as strong. The beak was so lightweight and it stayed on with only one strip of elastic, no matter now much I danced and walked around. This event was the perfect size to showcase work as it is such a small site, which fosters a strong sense of community between festival goers, who kept asking me questions about what I was wearing and how I made it. On the whole, because it was a pirate theme, noone questioned why I was a parrot; the main question I got during the time I was wearing it was 'can you see?'. When I told people I couldn't see mostly their response was to laugh, and whilst this was a reaction I expected, I think for future spectacles that are specifically for festivals I should consider making slight adjustments so that I can see where I a walking. This is mainly because I had to keep lifting up the beak to walk across the site, as I didn't want to trip over any rogue tree stumps. 'Laughter has a deep philosophical meaning, it is one of the essential forms of the truth concerning the world as a whole, concerning history and man; it is a peculiar point of view relative to the world; the world is seen anew, no less (and perhaps more) profoundly than when seen from a serious standpoint' (Bakhtin, 1984, p.66) - the laughter that came from my spectacle was a true reaction, and if I have shifted people's view of the world and made them think less seriously about the world, even if only temporarily, then I have succeeded.
This is the first time that a spectacle of mine has been worn in the context it was designed for, and it really confirmed for me that festival costume and attire is the career path that I want to pursue after I graduate. The active environment of a festival allows for audience engagement without the confines of a gallery space, and they don't have to try to understand what the work is about - they can simply look, watch and appreciate. Music performance would transform itself, by developing spectacle, amplifying personalities and heightening the semblance of spontaneity (Thornton, 1999, p.77). Movement is an important part of my work and the constant music meant that I was able to dance and show the parrot to its full potential. The music allowed the parrot to develop and reach its full potential. 'Within the spectacle there is no distinction between actors and spectators because the audience live within it' (Bakhtin, 1984, p.7) My research into the spectacle was so apparent at pirate ball and it really reinforced my reasonings behind calling my work spectacles. When I was wearing the parrot, I was living within the spectacle of the festival and becoming an established part of the festival, more so than if I had just been attending.
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