South Philly Review
Friday, July 14, 2006

The Idiopathic Ridiculopothy Consortium

By F. Durso

Judging from her company's name, Tina Brock oozes individuality. Not typical in to-day's society, she's fascinated by absurdist authors, such as Edward Albee, Samuel Beckett and Eugene lonesco, and has de-cided to take their works to the stage.

"I think theater is strongest when it can really exploit the theatrical principles" such as the elements of sound and light, Brock, of the 800 block of Kimball Street, said. "[Absurdist theater] does that really well."
Her company began this year and epito-mizes Brock's uniqueness. "I see the world as a totally odd, absurd, ridiculous place," she said. "All my life I've felt out of step."

The artist feels right at home in her com-munity, where she moved in 2001. Brock also has a home in Northern Liberties.
"[My South Philly neighborhood] is close to a lot of theaters. There's a lot of
rehearsal spaces that are popping up in the area," she said. "[Northern Liberties] just isn't accessible in the same way. "I feel like I get the true city and artistic experience."

For more information on the Philly Fringe, including tickets and events showcasing the above performers, visit www.livearts-fringe.org or call 215-413-1318.

fdurso@southphillyreview.com