What is Politaoke?
It’s real political speeches that we’ve turned into Karaoke!
Politaoke is non-partisan political karaoke project in which participants can respeak real contemporary political speeches from local, national and international politicians. Now you too can deliver the great rhetoric filled speeches of today’s most important politicians in this audience participation performance! Just come to a show, select a speech and take the mic when your name is called. It’s just like Karaoke, but easier since you don’t have to sing!
Why?
Politicians are actors, deliverers of words cleverly written by high paid political scientists working as speech writers sent to them via teleprompters. Other times they are professional improvisers, stringing together the current events jargon into sound bits and phrases that are perfect for being cut into newspapers, radio shows and television. But their words, whether powerful, ridiculous or down right wrong, belong to us. Politaoke provides the audience a platform to perform, mock and finally hear and see clearly what their politicians say.
Who Made This?
Created by Diana Arce, Politaoke is a natural progression in her work as an artist, filmmaker and activist, who is interested in using artistic methods as a platform to engage in political and cultural critique and commentary in the public realm. Much of her work stems not only from her personal experience, but also from contemporary politics, economics and news. She is also notorious for her prize-winning karaoke performance at Pan Am Lounge in Berlin.
Politaoke stems from a semester of research into the political discourse of contemporary politics. After organizing the the first German/English version of Politaoke in a Bar in Weimar on January 30, she decided to expand and take the project on the road because of the 2008 elections.