For Women Scotland: 'Irresponsible for EIF to promote choking show'

The Herald Scotland

5 days ago

They told The Herald: "The last thing we need is a respected international festival endorsing it."
However the International Festival said the work "does not explore violence against women" but rather a "deeply personal reflection on the artist's own experiences of consent and sexuality".
The Dan Daw Show is due to be performed across three nights at The Lyceum theatre next month as part of the Edinburgh International Festival and is billed as a fuse of "sexy choreography and touching theatricality" to "take a stand against ableism".
The festival's programme says it sees the Australian dancer "turn the spotlight inward, to find his own truth through a subject that holds the power to both challenge and liberate: kink".
Content guidance for the show adds: "During some of the physical interaction between Dan and [collaborator] KrisX, KrisX puts a hand around Dan's neck as if choking him. Dan is placed into a latex vacuum cube, that is tight around his neck."
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Posting online For Women Scotland, the campaign group which successfully took the Scottish Government to court over the legal definition of a woman, said: "It is absolutely disgusting that [EIF] is promoting a 'performance' which features the dangerous practice of 'choking'.
"It should NEVER be entertainment! We really think this show should be pulled as a matter of urgency."
Speaking to The Herald, the group added: "It is recklessly irresponsible for the Edinburgh Festival to promote dangerous and abusive acts in the name of art.
"Organisations tackling violence against women have been warning about choking in particular, and the outcomes which can include brain damage and fatalities.
"Sadly, this practice is widespread among younger generations and the last thing we need is a respected international festival endorsing it."
The annual arts festival which runs for three weeks in August receives public funding from the [[Scottish Government]] and [[Edinburgh]] Council. It bills itself as featuring "the best artists from opera, music, theatre and dance on the world's greatest stage".
Last year Beira's Place, the Edinburgh-based women's protection charity funded by J.K. Rowling, warned sexual choking was "becoming very normalised" among teenagers who increasingly saw it as a routine sexual act. It said a growing number of young women were turning to its counselling services after experiencing unwanted choking during sex.
Rape Crisis Scotland similarly warned strangulation was often raised by pupils in consent and pornography workshops in schools.
A spokesperson for the International Festival said: "We take the safety of artists and audiences very seriously. The detailed content descriptions for this performance are provided as guidance for those audience members who seek more information in order to make informed decisions, to feel safe and prepared.
"This work does not explore violence against women. Instead, it is a deeply personal reflection on the artist's own experiences of consent and sexuality.
"We encourage audiences to contact us directly if they would like to discuss the performance further."
Dan Daw was approached for a response.