The festival consists of three days of live sound, video, and performance, including dance. Admission is free, and donations will go directly to the performers. The fest will present international artists from Chile, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Haiti, Germany, and Iran. Local performers include Rat Bastard, known as Miami's "father of noise," and musician and composer Bill Orcutt.

Performances will take place inside at Edge Zones Art Center and outside at Miami Beach Botanical Garden. The venue will influence the interaction between the artists and the audience. "Performance is live," Oquet says. "You have to interact with the place... It’s not like theater; there’s no stage. It’s very fluid. It’s not scripted. The audience is moving around, standing, sitting.”

EXPAND

Musicians Pip & Duane play at a previous fest.

Miami Performance International Festival

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The form and content seen in performance is often unusual or uncomfortable, which is exactly what society needs, Oquet says. “The festival is a great place is come and see something different and exciting. They will change and rock your comfort zone,” she says. “To stay alive, we need to be pushed and challenged a little bit. We get too comfortable, which is close to death. In today's society, we need a little excitement. We need to be bumped a little bit.”

The Miami Performance International Festival is a way of fulfilling a need, giving presence to absence in Miami’s art world, she says. “What does Miami need to be a more interesting place?" Oquet asks. "People want to live in a place with a cultural offer. This festival is a way of bringing performance to the front.”

Miami Performance International Festival
June 23 through 25 at Edge Zones Art Space, 3317 NW Seventh Ave. Cir., Miami, and Miami Beach Botanical Garden, 2000 Convention Center Dr., Miami Beach. Visit the miamiperformancefestival.org.