The performance begins with a scenario common to contemporary life. Here we meet the characters A, B, C, and D.
A can’t afford to pay his rent to his landlord and friend B.
This puts a strain on their relationship, as B is expecting a baby with his girlfriend D, who wants B to stand up for himself and get the rent A owes him.
Meanwhile, A goes out and finds C at a bar.
C has something to ask from A and suggests that she will pay A’s rent if he does her a “favor.”
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In the second scene, B starts drawing a portrait of D, but instead of drawing her figuratively he starts writing down words including “WALK,” “SOCIETY,” and “BEER.”
Slowly the pieces of papers with the words on them start to accumulate on the floor.
D starts collecting these papers but instead of picking them up she starts cleaning the floor with them.
As this is happening, A has become C’s GPS, giving her directions on how to get to the train station while C is running late to the train screaming on the phone over and over again that “I hate this fucking city.”
The performance descends into hysteria until I start singing while picking up the pieces of papers from the floor.
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We are witness to a group of people who relate to one another under the dull compulsion of capital: tensions arise not in differences in personality but are derived from an impersonal and invisible power structure. The performance becomes a film production. The audience becomes a supporting player whose presence becomes an antagonism to the drama produced before their eyes.
As these characters are put in various stressful situations, like running late for a train or going through a security check at an airport, the performance breaks down, loses its grip on reality and spirals into chaos.
Images:
01.
Eating a Banana (2025) Performance. Photo: Oscar Carlson
02.
Installation view of Eating a Banana (2025) Photo: Oscar Carlson
