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Performance artists celebrate 10 years in Beacon

The tandem behind the Banana, Bag & Bodice theater company may not take themselves too seriously and their work can be absurdist and avant-garde. 

But after 25 years working and living together (and now raising a young person), Jason Craig and Jessica Jelliffe continue to explore philosophical questions about creativity and the purpose of art in the world and in their lives — until they stop, which could happen soon.

The couple is celebrating 10 years in Beacon, where they oversee the B House Performance Garage/Shack, an informal gathering spot for bands, authors and other artists.

So the B stands for the theater company? “Yes,” says Jelliffe. Or is it for Beacon? “Yes,” she says.

After adopting an artistic lifestyle, Craig and Jelliffe got priced out of Brooklyn and chose Beacon for its beauty. “We looked north, south, east and west,” says Jelliffe. “North has the mountains, the river and the artist community. Plus, it’s a nice place to raise a kid.”

A new work called “Hubris Always Gets You in the End” is a cautionary retrospective that begins in their basement, unfolds inside the house and commences in the backyard, where the party (or is it a play?) continues. Attendance is limited to 15, which sometimes includes the neighbors.

One of the play’s acts pays homage to a 2003 work, “Sandwich.” The vignette unfolds in the kitchen and centers on making a BLT. The scent of bacon lingers and the scene could be interpreted to symbolize the mundane domestic acts we perform every day to survive. 

The couple saved the original production’s bodices, which are outfitted with exaggerated padded breasts. They also donned bright red hats that resemble fezzes. A friend, Feff Zezza, strummed a guitar and sang. At one point, his dissonant approach mirrored an argument. 

“Hubris” hints at the tempests animating these walls and admits that sometimes Jelliffe and Craig “can drive each other crazy.” When voices carried, their dog looked perplexed. Going forward, decisions must be made whether to cease the artistic endeavors or keep on keeping on — sturm und drang guaranteed.

The company’s biggest hit, a 2008 retelling of the epic poem “Beowulf,” subtitled “A Thousand Years of Baggage,” receives a short reprise in the piano room off the kitchen (book by Craig, music by David Malloy).

The couple’s seven-year bout with writer’s block might have reflected something else, according to the play, like a desire to retire or a lack of motivation. But for now, the ball is still in the air. They plan more performances in the coming months.

After meeting in San Francisco, Craig and Jelliffe produced 15 works, mostly plays and performance pieces. After touring the world with “Beowulf,” the hoopla subsided. Then, they’re back at home frying bacon, slicing a tomato and assembling a sandwich.

Elevating domestic life by sharing their space with others, they enjoy presenting “The Perfect Play,” a musical nativity story.

“We’ve performed it with people in the community for the last eight years or so with a different Mary and Joseph every time,” says Craig. “It’s a silly musical we wrote for Trinity Church in the city with a simple format that’s easy to rehearse and get going super-quick.”

The company’s alliterative three-B name refers to objects the couple held for a photo to support their first grant application, a grind that evolved into a dreadful treadmill.

“We used to treat our art more like a job,” says Jelliffe. “But having to describe your work over and over again is demoralizing. Now, we’re focusing on performing for the community and creating for fun and entertainment.”

At the bottom of their email to ticket-
holders for the “Hubris” show is a quote pulled from a New York Magazine review: “They’re looking back on the stuff they’ve made together and asking the scariest question an artist can ask: Is this … it?”

For more information on the company, see bananabagandbodice.org.