According to Tony Olivares IDP ’12 (above), students wondered aloud: “who is he?” and “what is he doing?,” as the theater and dance major and sculpture minor painted his entire body as part of a public outdoor performance in celebration of International Dance Day, established by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1982. 

“It spurred a lot of questions,” he said about his act, The Traveler, which he performed for nearly two hours on the Mather Quad on Friday, April 29. “It was good to see the students communicating and interacting with each other.  As an artist, that is always a goal.” 

Olivares, an Asst. Director at DancEnlight in Hartford, said he’s performed this piece, “about a character that comes to Earth to figure out what humanity is all about,” every year since 2006 in public spaces as far south as Washington, D.C. and as far north as Montreal, Canada. 

(Photo by Margaret Lindsey)