Please Don't Touch The Artist

When performance artist Siobhan O’Loughlin lost all of her in-person upcoming gigs in early March of 2020, she flung herself into the digital sphere. She began frantically mounting works online, not out of inspiration or enthusiasm, but out of a desperate attempt to continue to compete in her field. Much to her surprise, audience members began tuning in twice a week to new and remounted episodes as O’Loughlin experimented with digital content, camera work, and lighting and sound design. The nature of the experience of PDT grew to be a familiar space: a space where zoom squares would turn their cameras on and keep them on, where the chat would be an endless side conversation pairing with the performance, and where microphones would be unmuted in order to solicit stories and share vulnerable space with folks who might otherwise be deemed as strangers. An army of empaths have formed. The regularly-attending audience of PDT have cultivated deep friendships completely outside of O’Loughlin’s narratives, but also within them, as the performances have become to serve as a place to gather. For over 80 performances, O’Loughlin’s audiences are taken on a journey of exploring and understanding the authentic self as defined by our relationships. From a heartbreaking oil change to a romantic-comedy-romp through flirting with a fellow film student over zoom, Please Don’t Touch seeks togetherness and genuine intimacy online. You are invited to join our community. You are encouraged to occupy a square and hold space for yourself and others. You deserve to be seen and understood.