The Astronaut Sesitna--More Experemetnal Work by Peter J. Woods

It's been two years since Peter J. Woods staged a show. The experimental artist behind some of the most surreally conceived work to be staged in Milwaukee in recent years retunes with The Astronaut Sestina and Other Plays. . . an evening of short works to be staged at The Underground Collaborative on 161 West Wisconsin Avenue. 

My earliest experience with Woods' work was in a Pink Banana shorts program at the Broadway Theatre Center. Wood's Systems was a longer experimental piece that he wrote that was staged by Insurgent Theatre at the Alchemist starring Tracy Doyle and  Cynthia Kmak that made it to the Minnesota Fringe Festival. Systems had kind of a haunting simplicity to it. Woods' last performance was the delightful brutal Standingstilloroworse, which was kind of a fusion between theatre and the art noise he's been engaging in lately in part as the host of Milwaukee Noise Fest. It's difficult to describe his work as it comes from its own language--its own way of interfacing with reality. 

Here's what to expect as seen in the press release:

"The Astronaut Sestina and Other Plays touches on a number of themes that run through Woods' work: the failures of communication, a fear of societal collapse, the limits of artistic expression and the unique brand of existential dread that comes from a technological world. These themes come to life through a decidedly minimalistic use of text, sound design, and static imagery, provoking audiences to tread into uncomfortable territory and face those gnawing fears."

The Astronaut Sestina and Other Plays runs July 11th through 20th at the Underground Collaborative in the Grand Avenue Mall.