Analysis Of Power Goes By Lyndon B Seldoms

Power Goes
The term “power” exists as a vague and perpetually changing concept. Throughout history, power has become synonymous with physical strength, leadership, sophistry, etc. In the dance-theatre performance “Power Goes,” The Seldoms used elements of movement, texts, and imagery to support one idea: Proper use of power can enhance the individual social status and improve personal rights. Nevertheless, the abuse of power can also lead to the breakdown of one’s reputation and contribution.
In the play “Power goes”, The Seldoms took Lyndon B. Johnson as an example to define power as a political weapon. President LBJ was adept at utilizing his power for political gains. He was well known for his particular gesture in conversations. For instance,

The imagery included the background set up, the stage, and the props. The background was the most intriguing design. Dozens of different styled white chairs were suspended and hung. Chairs are the representative of Congress and Parliament. In other words, they are the representative of power and rights. Different styled and sized chairs divided up different levels and degree of powers. It also differentiates the status of the power owners. Few scenes in the dance showed importance of chairs. There was one scene in which many people were all sitting on the chairs and doing same actions. That could be interpreted as that people were to obey LBJ’s lead. Following by people trampling the chairs under their feet and yelling for equal rights, a collapse of LBJ’s power and control over people was emerging. During this scene, the background displayed a huge sign of “=”. Six dancers raised up three chairs by to face the front stage, forming three diminutive screens. These three screens also showed “=” sign. They all signified Americans’ needs of equality. The stage then shift to next scene. All the dancers were gone; only few chairs fell on the floor disorderly. It was the reflection of LBJ’s downfall due to his misuse of

While dancers were performing some movements with much of strength, a repeated voice record of LBJ’s speech came up. One of the most famous was “power is where power goes”; it was also the one catching the show’s topic. Along with his other speeches, LBJ’s humorous and persuasive talks were played over and over. When the screen played imagery of protesting, the background music immediately shifted to a harsh tone. It enhanced the intension and anxiety of the stage atmosphere. Another example was, all of a sudden, all the dancers stopped fighting or tangling. Instead, they had hands holding together and reached out their arms to the sky. At that moment, the background started to play Lyndon Baines Johnson’s talking of “we will overcome”. The collaboration of imagery and the sound effect gave audiences an impression of getting control of tremendous