By: 2girls1comp (Marco De Mutiis & Alexandra Pfammatter) / Music: Magnetic Service (Extended Version) von Azu Tiwaline featuring Cinna Peyghamy / With the permission of: Livity Sound & Cylid Publishing / Made with: Grand Theft Auto V (Rockstar Games, 2013)
2girls1comp
Dancing Plague
Available afterwards in the HAUthek.
- Film
- Game
- Online
“Dancing Plague” is an adaptation of the world-famous open-world computer game “Grand Theft Auto V”, which is set in a fictional city based on Los Angeles and centres on a group of gangsters. In the video work produced by 2girls1comp, the game’s traditionally gendered choreography is subverted, forcing every male NPC to dance feverishly whenever the player holds the H key. This intervention spotlights the inherent gender biases within the game’s animation system, where dance moves are primarily designed for female performers, often objectified as sex workers. By redirecting these choreographies to male characters, “Dancing Plague” disrupts the rigid gender binaries coded into the game, creating a visual language where masculinity is both liberated and challenged.
The soundtrack of Azu Tiwaline, a French Tunisian musician known for blending contemporary electronic music with sub-Saharan trance traditions, enhances the work’s immersive experience. The sonic backdrop also deepens the critique of gendered biases in digital spaces and underscores the themes of ritual, trance and liberation.
Cast
Dates
Current
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