HB Residency Artist TomokoH DeblinGer her solo show My Body Says No, a Labyrinth Theater Barn Series selection
HB Residency: TomokoH DeblinGer’s My Body Says No
Sunday, June 29 at 4pm
HB Playwrights Theatre | 124 Bank Street
Pay-What-You-Wish, $30 Recommended
About the Project
Presented at the Labyrinth Theater’s Barn Series in February 2025, My Body Says No explores how to tell a story, create colors in the energy between performer and audience, much like music does. The solo show features a middle-aged woman who begins to experience mysterious physical symptoms and is forced to confront the loss of her identity. Her journey lays bare the haunting cost of silence – the way unspoken grief and suppressed emotions can echo through the body and the soul. “This process is exciting and scary,” says DeblinGer, “especially in the moment of sharing with an audience, who have as much to do with the performance as the performer.”
About the Artist
Born in Okinawa, Japan, and now lives in Brooklyn, NY. TomokoH DeblinGer’s work reflects an inner world, drawing deeply from memories and fantasies. Recent projects include Mad Mystic, presented at Theaterlab’s Gallery Series 2024. Both Memoire and My Body Says No were featured at LAByrinth’s Barn Series Festival at different times. The play Mimi’s Cafe was selected for LAB’s In The Kitchen reading series at The Public Theater. TomokoH wrote and directed the short film Missing You Ko, screened at the HBO screening room, and directed the documentary Happy Anniversary for Hiroyukifilms, a production company co-founded with David Deblinger. TomokoH is thrilled to be part of the HB Residency and continuing to develop new projects. For updates, see Instagram, Bluesky, and a personal writing journal on Substack.