Show to promote sexuality, educate students through skits, songs
The UCLA Sex Squad is a collective of undergrads who use life experiences and creative talents to create funny, multimedia theater to open dialogue with teens all over Los Angeles about sex and sexuality. Singers, dancers, actors, poets, musicians, and even people who would never call themselves “artists” collaborate to help make Los Angeles a sexier and safer place. The Sex Squad believes that Valentine’s Day is a radically sexy celebration of empowerment, consent, and self-love! Celebrate in anticipation of V-Day with a special night of performance, live storytelling and arts-activism.
"In honor of celebrating Valentine’s Day, a student group at the University of California, Los Angeles, hosted a series of “educational skits” related to sex during an on-campus performance this week.
The UCLA “Sex Squad,” which labels itself as an undergraduate sexual health performance group, presented “ForePlay,” a series of skits that follows three individuals exploring various sexual health topics such as getting tested for sexually transmitted infections, proper consent, and coming out of the closet.
UCLA Sex Squad members will dance, sing and roll condoms on foam fingers in their upcoming show “ForePLAY.”
The undergraduate sexual health performance group will debut a set of educational skits in its show “ForePLAY” in Kaufman Hall on Wednesday. The group’s performance follows the narratives of three different characters all while touching upon sexual health topics such as consent, sexually transmitted infection testing and coming out.
Bobby Gordon, co-founder of UCLA Sex Squad and assistant director of the UCLA Art and Global Health Center, said Wednesday’s program seeks to debunk myths around sexual health through performative art. Gordon said demystifying the topic will hopefully encourage safer sex practices for the upcoming Valentine’s Day holiday.
“So often when conversations about sex happen, if they do happen, they are viewed as a very clinical experience,” Gordon said. “Sex Squad is all about subverting that experience and seeing laughter, joy and play as critical parts of sexual health.”
Gordon said sexual education programs can sometimes take an overly cautious approach to sex by talking about it as a purely biological function. Adding humor, dance and other forms of art to the subject allows audience members to both learn about sex and feel comfortable talking about it, he added.
“We learn from what entertains us. We learn from what makes us laugh, what excites us and it’s in our memory,” he said. “When we engage with art, we engage on a deeper level.”
UCLA Sex Squad member Oscar Tsukayama plays a closeted gay man who expresses himself through dance and choreography. The fourth-year world arts and cultures student said his character, Javier, explores his sexuality through genres of dance that seem masculine or feminine such as hip-hop and jazz, respectively. As a dancer, Tsukayama said he can connect personally to the story he’s sharing.
“The idea that being a male dancer means being gay reflects a very homophobic attitude,” he said. “I’ve had pressure put on me to come out, even though I’m not gay, and it’s been something I’ve had to live with for the majority of my life.”
Tsukayama said his character, surrounded by homophobia and toxic masculinity perpetrated by his father, stays in the closet due to a fear of nonacceptance. But by uploading his dance videos to YouTube, Javier finds the strength to come out and define his own identity."— Alexandra Del Rosario, Feb. 5, 2018
This post is an excerpt, read the full article at the Daily Bruin website.
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