Perspectives: CHRISTEENE - The Lion The Witch and The Cobra

with very special guests Peaches & David Hoyle

Artist's Statement :
In September of 2019, with the help of amazing friends, producers and institutions,  “The Lion, the Witch and the Cobra” was performed at The Barbican Centre in London, England. I described the evening as “a collective reverberation to these tumultuous times channelled through Sinéad O’Connor’s debut album”.  I always expected this evening to live and breathe only once, and then disappear…however, it continued to find me, as did Sinéad’s music and strength during extremely tumultuous times in her life over the past few years.  We are still in dark times, darker than I could have ever foreseen. We are still suffering at the hands of ignorant and dangerous men, and we are now without the physical form of Sinéad O’ Connor roaming this earth, howling at its injustices and ​​​​​​​singing of love and understanding. There is no better time than now to ignite the ​​​​​flame of this show once again. To call to arms and gather our voices and our physical forms in recognition of the dangers we face as a people, and of a woman who faced those dangers head on.
– Paul Soileau

Performance artist and musician CHRISTEENE performs Sinéad O’Connor’s The Lion and the Cobra with her live band, friends and allies.

A collective reverberation to these tumultuous times The Lion The Witch And The Cobra sees CHRISTEENE – ‘a dirt-poor, highly sexualised, twisted southern gothic vision’ (The Guardian) – critiquing our current political and social climate through her provocative, satirical performance – equal measures terrifying and hilarious. A unified response to ideologies that threaten our way of life, CHRISTEENE pays homage to O’Connor for ‘her capacity to survive, her private and very public wars, her compassion and vulnerability’, conducting this message through the anger and energy of her debut album. Galvanised into action by her rallying cry, CHRISTEENE is joined by her band led by Peter Stopschinski, dancers T Gravel and Dawg Elf and very special guests Peaches & David Hoyle.

CHRISTEENE is a raw spirit of ferocious music, unabashed sexuality, and fiery intimate stank. The artist has collaborated with as well as performed with numerous acclaimed musicians, including Faith No More, Fever Ray, Kembra Pfhaler, Psychic TV, Soft Cell and more. Longtime collaborators include award winning filmmaker PJ Raval, along with iconic fashion designer Rick Owens and artist Michèle Lamy.  CHRISTEENE has been photographed by Juergen Teller, Katerina Jebb, Matt Lambert and Wolfgang Tillmans.

An iconic feminist musician, producer, director, and performance artist, Peaches has spent more than two decades pushing boundaries and breaking barriers, dramatically altering the landscape of popular culture as she forged a bold, sexually progressive path that’s opened the doors for countless others to follow. Through music, art, film, theatre, television, and books, she has upended stereotypes and embraced taboos, challenging social norms and patriarchal power structures while championing LGBTQIA+ rights and issues of gender and sexual identity with biting wit and fearless originality. 

As a cabaret star, actor and visual artist, David Hoyle’s infamous alter-ego ‘The Divine David’ transported him from radical alternative settings in the '80s to the studios of Channel 4 in the '90s. For the last four decades, Hoyle has queered the boundaries between live art, performance, theatre and cabaret – conquering nightlife around the world and working extensively in film and TV. A major, three-week  retrospective of his career to date was recently held at Aviva Studios in Manchester. 

CHRISTEENE : The Lion The Witch And The Cobra
Conceived and Performed by CHRISTEENE / Paul Soileau
Produced by ArKtype / Thomas O. Kriegsmann
Music Direction by Peter Stopschinski
Artwork by Katerina Jebb

Presented by NCH in association with Mother