CRYSIS, Soho House Austin, 2024. Live Performance. Two white pedestals, a vocal processor, two telephone microphones, two speakers. Approximately 25 minutes.

The inaugural iteration of Chandrika Metivier's performance series, CRYSIS was presented as part of Soho House Austin's inaugural Artist Residency. Engaging with Act 2 of Ariana Reines's TELEPHONE, a two-time Obie Award winning play drawing inspiration from Avital Ronell's The Telephone Book, this performance uniquely featured only half of the full text from Act 2. It also featured a cappella interjections of original music written by the artist in response to the text.

CRYSIS employs Reines's challenging text to explore the complex internal landscape of a character experiencing internalized "telephones," a concept touching upon themes of mental health and societal perception, particularly regarding schizophrenia. This first presentation introduced the series' core premise of placing this intimate, rarely seen experience within a public or institutional setting.

A performance about engaging with difficult texts, original musical responses, and challenging dialogues surrounding mental states. It's also a story about initiating a multi-part exploration of a singular source text through iterative performance.