The conditions of these performances absorbed all mishaps and delays into the work

Evidence

The trek through empty SoHo, the lateness of the hour, the slowness of the action, the evocative music, the joints that might circulate through the small audience combined to create an elastic framework that seemed to successfully encompass in Smith’s framework all mishaps and delays—in fact, anything that happened. Some performances had an unmistakable aura of menace, others were lighter and more relaxed, characterized by the ironic juxtaposition of music and activity and Smith’s deadpan clowning. — J. Hoberman, Everything Is Now, 1614

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s thesis about material conditions producing avant-gardes — cheap rent (SoHo), small audiences, illegality (marijuana joints) as enabling conditions.