Rivera Cook portrays herself
as a dancer turned-bike-messenger
in Cook 'n Company's Jimmy/Joan.
Jimmy/Joan
presented by Cook 'n Company
September 7th-16th
Fri-Sat, 8pm admission: $12
Sun, 3pm matinees Pay-What-You-Can
The Actors' Theatre
1001 Center St, Santa Cruz, CA
One Thursday afternoon, former PedX partner Rivera Cook is balancing carefully on a pretty little track bike, practicing her track stands. "It's for the show," she says as she promptly falls off the bike.
Rivera worked for PedX in 2005, juggling 20 hours of bike riding with another 20 of dancing. At the end of the year, The 418 Project, a non-profit dance studio in Santa Cruz, offered her a six-month residency to choreograph a show. "It was hard for me to leave. I really believe in what PedX is all about. But I'm a dancer at heart, and my gift to the world is through that." So she quit her job at PedX and, 18 months later, she found herself a bike messenger again, this time on stage.
"It's semi-autobiographical, but I fictionalized my story quite a bit to touch on themes that affect more people," she says. In the show, Rivera plays Vera, a young dancer who pedals to pay the rent while doing art and activism on the side. Overworked and stressed out, she develops a martyr and rebel complex, resembling James Dean and Joan of Arc. "This is a story about a young woman who wants to save the world, but she is destroying herself while doing it. We can change the world, but we must balance…" she grins as she falls off another track stand attempt, "taking care of ourselves, too."
Rivera says bike messengers play a literal as well as symbolic role in the show. "Couriers, and all other cyclists, have always exemplified bravery and freedom to me. And rebellion against the status quo. We get out there into traffic, and just by being there, we're changing the world." In their honor, Rivera is dedicating one night of performance to messengers. "Messengers of all kinds: artists, activists, couriers, kids that ride their bikes to school instead of their parents SUV's. Joan of Arc was a messenger, and James Dean was another kind all together. It's not an easy role," Rivera says.
"Messenger Night" on Sept 8th starts with a 7:30pm curtain talk entitled, "Don't Shoot the Messenger! Contemporary Messengers in Today's Society." A reception follows the show. Rivera created the event to bring together all sorts of messengers, and get them talking to one another about the work they do. "It's a mixer for people who have vision, voice, and aren't afraid to do what they believe."
For more information or reservations, call 831-466-9021.