Yoko Ono's iconic and vulnerable 'Cut Piece' is being re-staged live by artist MPA at Redcat, alongside a retrospective at The Broad. The article explores the history, risk, and evolving meaning of this landmark performance art, where audience members cut the artist's clothing.
The article delves into Yoko Ono's groundbreaking 1964 performance, 'Cut Piece,' a pivotal work in performance art where she sat motionless as strangers cut away her clothing. Featured in black and white footage at The Broad's 'Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind' retrospective, the piece is known for its inherent risk, vulnerability, and reliance on audience participation, making it a 'frightening piece to perform,' as Ono herself stated. To fully convey its impact, The Broad is staging live performances of 'Cut Piece' at the Redcat theater on July 18 and 19, performed by Los Angeles artist MPA. MPA, a seasoned artist familiar with body-focused political work, accepted the invitation with trepidation, not due to physical risk, but concern over making such a famous piece – which has influenced artists like Marina Abramović and even The Simpsons – feel contemporary and authentic in 2026, rather than a mere re-enactment. Connor Monahan, director of Ono's studio, emphasizes that each presentation of 'Cut Piece' is a new performance, shaped by its unique context, audience, and choices made by participants, rather than a fixed outcome. Research revealed Ono's own evolving relationship with the work, initially stemming from anger at the treatment of women's bodies in 1964, transforming into a gesture of love and peace by her last performance in 2003. MPA identifies with the violent subtext of Ono's early work, having processed her own trauma through art, and now aims to embrace the duality of anger and love within the score. For her performance, MPA chose garments by designers connected to war and state-sanctioned violence, preparing mentally through meditation and drawing on her experience in figure modeling. While acknowledging the potential provocation of the scissors, MPA finds power and reassurance in Ono's composure, reaffirming the commanding presence possible in wordless live art. The exhibition 'Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind' runs until October 11 at The Broad.
