To Get There… You Must Undergo… A Radical… Transformation

From Andie Flores:

“This November, Austin-based writer and performer Andie Flores (she/her, b. 1990) directs and stars in ‘To Get There… You Must Undergo… A Radical… Transformation…’, a new stage show about a clown who, at the head of a year-long depression, falls asleep watching The Wizard of Oz. Stuck inside a twisted, Oz-like version of her dream, the clown must confront all the things she thinks might get her to the other side of her misery. Can she learn to love the parts of herself she hates or is the solution to become an entirely different self altogether? The story follows Flores as the clown with drag artist Arinna (she/they) as the clown’s idealized self. To Get There… uses drag, monologues, music, and some partial to full nudity, to explore the human psyche and vulnerability amid larger conversations of self-improvement. It previously debuted for one sold-out show at OUTsider Festival this past February. Flores, a PhD student in Mexican American Latina/o Studies at UT and self-described ‘embarrassment artist,’ has been performing around Austin for the last nine years, experimenting with live performances that pair the queer and comedic with over-exaggerated and grotesque explorations of identity. She has a penchant for trolling her audiences: Think surprising her drag brunch with a live wrestling match (and winning!) against a faux disgruntled homophobic patron, or a Celine Dion drag performance as a poop-filled toilet at Fallout Theatre’s Good Pollution alt comedy show, or making her Instagram followers falsely believe she’d been cast as important Latina figures in upcoming TV shows or movies.) For this new show, Flores plays with a performance that isn’t just about being in relationship with herself, but also being in relationship to the people witnessing her. Flores is also a visual artist, with art exhibitions at Presa House Gallery, The Museum of Human Achievement, Ivester Contemporary, MASS Gallery, Future Front Film Fest, Contrast Film Festival, Fusebox Festival, and The Dallas Latino Cultural Center. In 2020, she was named one of Remezcla’s ‘40 Emerging, Texas-based Artists to Know.’ Co-starring in To Get There… is drag artist Arinna, part of the cast of the award-winning monthly drag brunch Coco Cxnts at Coconut Club. To say Arinna is a staple of the Austin drag scene is an understatement: at 24, her high energy, captivating performance style has made her either a host or cast member of four different long-running shows around town. It was being mesmerized by Arinna’s performances that in part inspired Flores to write the show for the two of them. Their performance partnership allows the pair both to experiment with creativity and genre-bending, and in the case of ‘To Get There…’ with the moments of vulnerability that happen when an

audience is present for longer than a single song. (Arinna and Flores also have a monthly drag show together at Cheer Up Charlie’s called Bone Apple Tea.) The show’s tech and stage direction are designed by digital artist Celine Lassus (https://celinelassus.com/), with production assistance from The Museum of Human Achievement’s Zac Traeger (https://themuseumofhumanachievement.com/). ‘To Get There… You Must Undergo… A Radical… Transformation…’ runs November 10-12 and 17-19 at Crashbox (5305 Bolm Rd Unit 12, Austin, TX 78721).”

Run time: 1 hour.
Masks are strongly suggested. Probably not suitable for children.
Friday November 10 at 8 pm
Saturday November 11 at 8 pm
Sunday November 12 at 2 pm *Mask mandatory showing*
Friday November 17 at 8 pm
Saturday November 18 at 8 pm
Sunday November 19 at 2 pm

For tickets and more information, visit the show’s Eventbrite. ‘To Get There…’ is
fundraising through the show’s opening. To donate, visit the project’s GoFundMe.

Tickets:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/to-get-there-you-must-undergo-a-radical-transformation-tic
kets-733651259667?aff=oddtdtcreator
Fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/andies-stage-show-fundraiser
Andie Flores’ website: www.andieflores.com
Selected past Austin-based interviews and write-ups:
(2023) Time Out: Arinna Heys is making drag more accessible in Texas:
https://www.timeout.com/austin/things-to-do/future-seekers-arinna-heys
(2021) Glasstire: An Interview with Andie Flores about Audience, Excess, and Legacy
https://glasstire.com/2021/01/25/artist-andie-flores-talks-about-her-work-in-an-interview/”