Small Claims
2026
Cast cement, cast pigmented silicone, caster wheels, cherry wood, concrete, elastic bands, glass bowl, hardware, MDF, metal-framed documents, metal mesh, metal struts, plastic, receipt printer, steel square rod, thermal receipt paper roll
Dimensions (left to right)
37.375 x 16.5 x 43.25 in; 37.375 x 16.5 x 23.25 in; 79.25 x 16.5 x 18.25 in;
63.5 x 16.5 x 20.9 in; 37.375 x 16.5 x 43.25 in; 33.475 x 16.5 x 32 in
Fabrication assisted by Mckenna Goade, Sam Christian, and Max Azemar
Small Claims is a performance-installation that examines the theatrical structure of the courtroom through the experience of a housing dispute. Developed from a real case filed in Kings County Civil Court, the work draws from the procedural language and scripted exchanges of the New York judicial system. Court documents become a score, where specific words, responses, gestures, and forms of address determine how participants speak and act.
The performance treats the courtroom as a stage and legal procedure as choreography. Exaggerated courtroom speech, repetitive actions, and constructed sound expose the power dynamics embedded within institutional language. Facts are fragmented and transformed into acoustic material, while gestures and verbal cues become mechanisms for directing behavior. Through this reenactment, Small Claims considers how authority is produced through language, repetition, and performance, and how an individual is required to perform within systems designed to appear objective and orderly.
It is presented as part of the 2026 MFA Fine Arts Thesis Show at Parsons School of Design.
Small Claims
2026
Performance, sound, video
20:00
April 17, 2026
Arnold and Sheila Aronson Galleries (66 5th Ave)
Performance Details
Part I
April 17, 2026 at 7:00 PM
Arnold and Sheila Aronson Galleries (66 5th Avenue, New York, NY)
Part II
April 28, 2026 at 6:30 PM
NYC Civil Court, Kings County (141 Livingston Street, Room 305, Brooklyn, NY)
Director — Jayden Liu
Performers — Vanda Focanti, Jackie Brady, Jayden Liu, Mckenna Goade, Sam Christian
Sculpture, sound, projection — Jayden Liu
Costume — Vanda Focanti
Choreography — Jayden Liu, Vanda Focanti
Crews — Max Azemar, Tristan Gaebler
Video Documentation — Teresa Olds, Felisa Nguyen