Five Book Launch Walk 0509201417

Performance Script

Gathering at 7 Bright Street, L61DL

Gary: Hello everybody! This is the launching of the Institute for the Art and Practice of Dissent at home's book FIVE. Thank you for coming. This event will last about an hour. It involves an action here at 7 Bright Street, an action in Everton Park and the fnal action of handing out the books, around 6pm-ish at 55 Kemp Avenue.

Lena: This book is about the time before baby James. This is when we were fve. This is when we lived at 7 Bright Street. Oh, the good old times... The book covers 5 years of our lives at 7 Bright Street. Neal and Gabriel and Sid, were you happy at 7 Bright Street?

Gary: Shouting this loud makes this event more important than it would otherwise seem if I spoke in a civil voice. When the Institute shouts it's supposed to be more cultural.

Lena: Come on Gary! We told Lisa we will be here at fve, and it's already quarter past. Come on!

Gary: On to the frst action: Our favourite feature of 7 Bright Street was the tree in the garden. When we moved in on 26th January 2008 the tree was this tall (indicates height). When we left it was around 10 meters high. When we left on the 30th November 2013 we sang a goodbye song to the tree and the house and the Institute. We are delighted to say that a small part of our history over the six years of living here will be coming with us today.

Lena: Gary, it's time. Let's exchange our gifts.

Exchange of book for a section of the tree trunk at 7 Bright Street.

Gary: We will now provide our former neighbours with a complementary copy of the book – with our new address should they like to visit us.

Lena: Everybody here will receive their copy at the end of the performance at 55 Kemp Avenue.

Give out books to neighbours: Ray and Alison

Gary: We now invite you all to walk with us to the highest point in Liverpool whilst discussing the idea of your dream home amongst yourselves. In order to warm you up a little Lena will read out a short text that we composed earlier today on the theme of a dream home.

Lena: A dream home. A terrace, I see a terrace. Defnitely an outdoor space where I'm drinking samovars of black tea. It's a kind of aristocratic mansion, something from Three Sisters or it has a Mediterranean air to it. It's warm but it's never summer. It's not hot. There's a writer's room and there are those doors that open out onto the terrace,veranda – with the shutters out – persijane. There are people around, visitors that come and go.

Gary sees an oversized victorian semi, with large gardens front and back and a steam railway choo-choo-ing away every few hours to indicate the time of day. There's an eco fridge run by wind power cooling the fnest homemade ales and white wines, whilst the rooms are always occupied with travellingguests who are so fascinating and joyous you never want them to leave – but they do, coz you'd get sick of them if they didn't.

Gary: In Croatia, there's a small town on the island of Hvar, called Stari Grad (which mean Old Town). And in Stari Grad, there's Tvrdanj. It's a house, a summer residence built by Petar Hektorovic, a Croatian Renaissance poet, in 16th century. He calledthe house 'Tvrdanj'. It's an invented word, a new word, it means a kind of a fortress, but also a kind of building. REX ET NOMINE – A thing of its name. The house is full of inscriptions, in Latin and Croatian. One says: Petar Hectorović, son of Marino, at his own expense and by his own effort built this for the use of himself and his friends. The other: Alas the days fow by like waves and do not return. The housewas constructed according to a idea. Three levels. Three foors. The frst level is water: there's a pond for fsh at the base, in the central area. The second level is made for humans, it has rooms, bedrooms, library etc. The earth. The second level is the earth.

The third level is air. A space for birds and trees. Hektorovic was concerned that travellers and paupers are always welcome to Tvrdanj. He was very good friends with the local fshermen and wrote his famous poem about a fshing trip dedicating the poem to them.

Lena: What's your dream house? Your ideal living space? Who occupies it? Is there room for a room of one's own? Where are you? Discuss, discuss, discuss as you walk towards Everton Park.

Walk to the highest point in Liverpool – Everton Park – including a diversion, a playground.Audience and the Institute members take turn at carrying a part of the tree trunk among themselves.

Gary: It's time to paint the fag! In 2008 during the Capital of Culture year we inscribed the banner with the word of Felix Guattari: The concept of culture is deeply reactionary. That was the time of the banner, now this is the time of the fag.This time, today, 6 years later, in2014, we will be using the words of Iris Marion Young, and her essay 'House and Home: Feminist Variations on a Theme'. As Lena is painting the fag, you are all invited to share your dream home visions with us. Here's a section of tree trunk for your support.

Audience members offer their Dream Home visions as Lena is painting the fag.

'In this commodifed construction of personal achievement and lifestyle, the house often becomes an end in itself.'

Gary: We all need to read it out together now! Three times. Gabriel is our leader for this section.

Lena: You are all now invited to 55 Kemp Avenue for book signings, wine and tea. Help us carry the fag with its wet paint as well as the tree trunk all the way down towards Anfeld, but still the Everton ward, to 55 Kemp Avenue, the house we ended up in.

Kemp Avenue: The Institute. Books are signed by Gary and stamped by Lena. We drink wine and tea, we eat nuts and olives.