::About Us::

The Centre for Transgressive Behaviors is a performance art group based in Raleigh, North Carolina, that is best known for including audience members in its performances. But that's not all we do. We're interested in all forms of theatrical experimentation, and we've been testing the limits of good taste since early 1998. Our influences include: the Avant-Garde, Futurists, DaDa, and Artaud and the Theatre of Cruelty, among others, though we've pretty much relied on the minds of our own changing cast.

Since the first show in Winston-Salem, we have evolved quite a bit (not necessarily progressed, just changed), as our members have shifted and brought in new ideas, as performances themselves have fed our heads, and as experiences (as a group and individually) have warped our once-healthy minds. One thing that's consistent is that we've increasingly challenged the idea of the passive spectator. With each show, the CTB has tried to eliminate the gap between those performing and those attending, by writing parts for the unknowing (but usually willing) audience members. Describing a typical CTB show is tricky, since each show is created with different ideas and motifs in mind, and since some of the content is improvised. To get an idea of what goes on in particular performances or if you'd like to see pictures, visit our Shows page.

The people who are lightly responsible for driving this machine have shifted, and the group as a whole has erratically grown. The CTB was initiated by Craig Hilton and John Dawkins, who, together with Staffan Persson, became the leading CTB troika during the earlier CTB performances, until John Dawkins left the group. (John has since returned to the group for the last few shows, and has continued to please and surprise with his disturbing performances. Staffan, on the other hand, has dutifully returned to his motherland, Sweden, and will no longer be performing with the group, as of January 2001.) Although this triumvirate formulated the basic concepts and ideas for the shows, little would have been accomplished without the contribution from several other CTB members. Stef Maus and Matt Routh created most of the costumes for the earlier CTB shows, Amanda Stone contributed ideas and set-design for the most recent shows, and Merrit Partridge has provided musical scores for several CTB performances. Since various members of the CTB have come and gone, the group has benefitted from a constant flow of ideas, which has provided inspiration for new shows. The group has predominately performed shows in the Raleigh area (though we did venture as far as Columbia, SC), but has intentions of expanding that radius.

Why bother performing? We'd like to bring the primal development of action and reaction between performers to the stage. We prefer the rules to be left at the door, and to be seen as merely a collection of diverse beings interacting with one another. And it's fun.