Choreography of the Everyday

(Close)

ACT I
Metronome: 120 BPM

I wonder what it means to be angry.

I wonder if it's a feeling, or a force inside my chest.

I wonder why my heart's so fast.

I wonder why my words drag behind.

I wonder why my chest is tight.

I wonder why my lung's unsatisfied.

I wonder why I can't breathe deeply.

I wonder if there's a knot in my heart.

I wonder why my neck is hot.

I wonder why my ears ring.

I wonder why I cannot see.

I wonder why I get tunnel vision.

I wonder why my shoulders are ready to fight.

I wonder who I was ever going to fight.

I wonder why my throat is closed.

I wonder why there's tears in my eyes.

I wonder why I feel guilty.

I wonder if I'm a good person.

[WHISTLE BLOW — fighters freeze]
(read at normal pace)

I wonder why after I've calmed down that
I feel an intense sense of dread.

[WHISTLE BLOW — fighters unfreeze]

ACT II
Metronome: 80 BPM

I wonder why it's hard to remember
moments when I am angry.

I wonder if it's the result of my bad memory,
or trying to block things out.

I wonder if this fog around me is my own doing.

I wonder if the heat is trapped beneath my skin.

I wonder if my body is actually warm,
or if I'm burning only on the inside.

[WHISTLE BLOW — fighters freeze]
(read at normal pace)

I wonder why there is another voice in my mind,
checking the anger, telling myself how stupid I am
for getting so worked up, asking myself why must
I get this way right now.

[WHISTLE BLOW — fighters unfreeze]

ACT III
Metronome: 60 BPM

I wonder why I feel wide awake after a full day of work.

I wonder why it's hard to sleep when my eyes feel so heavy.

I wonder where my thoughts drift while my body stays
anchored to the bed.

I wonder about the events of the day, processing and decoding the information and storing it somewhere.

I wonder why sometimes falling asleep is a struggle,
why I am tired all day, wanting nothing more than to
sleep, but once it is finally time to do so my mind is
awake and resisting.

I wonder too much and then try to slow my thoughts,
empty my thoughts, or turn them into visualizations.

I wonder about how to turn off my inner monologue,
end the conscious stream of English words sounding
in my brain.

I wonder if I can truly get comfortable, position myself just right, or if I will always be too hot, too cold, and need to keep shifting under the covers to get right.

I wonder how muscles and joints feel tense even though
I'm lying down.

I wonder how my body can feel relaxed and ready to move
at the same time.

I wonder why my hair is poking the back of my neck.

I wonder if it would be easier to sleep if the fridge didn't
hum every 20 minutes, or if I closed the window to not
let the street light in.

I wonder why the room decides to be hot only when
I'm trying to fall asleep.

I wonder about how the dark and quiet don't make me
feel sleepy.

I wonder why my mind wanders even when I know
I should be going to bed.

(movements soften — metronome slows to 50 BPM)

I wonder how the senses can calm me, how smelling my sheets and pillow and shampooed hair can calm me.

I wonder if the trees outside my window slow their
rustling, like they're tiptoeing so they don't wake me.

I wonder if I remembered to get everything done that
I needed to today.

I wonder about the people in my life and the people
that I haven't seen in a while.

I wonder how they're doing.

I wonder why I feel nostalgic when I can't sleep.

I wonder why it's hard for me to let the people and things
that I miss go.

I wonder if I can feel the moment I sink into unconsciousness,
and stop it.

[WHISTLE BLOW — wrestlers freeze]
(read at normal pace)

I wonder if I can still be aware in sleep.

[WHISTLE BLOW — wrestlers unfreeze]

ACT IV
Metronome: 50 BPM

I wonder how the visual thoughts slowly overcome my physical consciousness, transitioning from imagination to
the state of dreaming, when my heartbeat finally slows, my body relaxes, my muscles unclench, and I lose all physical awareness of my body in my front mind.

I wonder how I go from this to sleeping.

I wonder how I don't remember the transition from
thought to sleep.

I wonder why some nights are easier to fall asleep than others.

On other nights, I hardly wonder at all.

(wrestlers remain in place; exhausted breathing is the only movement)
[END]

Choreography of the Everyday, 2025

Writen by: Reid Hightower, Irving Morris, Izza Alyssa
Directed by Izza Alyssa
Editor: Izza Alyssa
Performed: Reid Hightower, Irving Morris

Choreography of the Everyday documents a live performance built from a collaborative composition practice, a narrative and poem drawn from recordings of two states: the feeling of falling asleep, and the memory of anger.

Performers move through scripted acts of wrestling
and stillness, cued by shifting metronome tempos and whistle signals that mark moments of freeze and release.

(Return to Projects)

001. COLLECTING

001.
COLLECTING