Measure of Fidget (Part 2)

In 1886, psychologist Francis Galton sat at the back of a lecture hall and, during a 90-minute talk, kept a tally of the number of fidgets each individual student performed per 60 seconds – the record was 53. He concluded that the number of fidgets per minute gave a numerical expression for boredom.

During lockdown Joel has at times been sat down, binge watching TV, knitting, or just being plain idle – completely at a loss of what to do. During these recurring episodes of nothingness, he seems to enter a sort of meditative state of sub-conscious gobbledygook, and occasionally goes on some bizarre out of body journey.

Measure of Fidget (Part 2) is an investigation into boredom, and the highs and lows of not having anything to do.
The show is performed by Joel O’Donoghue, his flatmates, and a group of very willing and wonderful local volunteers.

Choreographer: Joel O’Donoghue
Performers: Joel O’Donoghue, Carla Harrison-Hodge, Ben Grant, Waj Ali, Ashley Tan, Sabrina Rachel Duncan, Bruce Currie.
Sound Designer: Ben Grant
Filmed by: Scott Buxton

About the Artist

Joel is a performance artist and has worked for a range of internationally renowned companies such as, Pina Bausch’s Tanztheater Wuppertal, Luca Silvistrini’s Protein, Ben Wright’s BGROUP, and Hagit Yakira Dance. As a choreographer he has performed work at a variety of established venues both in the UK and abroad, such as Sadler’s Wells Lillian Baylis Studio, The Place, Tripspace, and L’Escaut (Brussels). He was also commissioned to create a dance film work for Ballet Boyz in January 2020, which will be premiering in Autumn on Channel 4. He has most recently toured two separate works, Treasure and Tat (2017-19), and Forever Again, All The Time (2020).

He is now interested in taking his work to less conventional performance spaces, in order to make the work more accessible to the wider public.

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