Jeff McMahon's performances sear us in a fever dream of poetics, politics and unflinching personal witness. His fierce collision of social texts and equal opportunity "j'accuse" claims a rigorous performance vision that unsparingly unpacks society and self.

Jeff McMahon, Six Monologues 1990 – 2007, NoPassport Press, 2018.


read it at Google Books


SIX MONOLOGUES 1990-2007 by Jeff McMahon collects six of McMahon's works that span across socio-political, queer and historical frames of discourse: DISCONTENTS, SCATTER, CITY OF GOD, HEEL, HONORABLE DISCHARGE, FAILURE TO THRIVE (we small hours). Provocative, witty, daring and compassionate, these works are a testament to McMahon's singular vision. This edition is part of NoPassport Press' Dreaming the Americas Series.


" ... a pioneering practitioner of what was once known of as 'the talking dancer' but has subsequently been subsumed under the rubric of performance art. He is an originator of the form in its post-modern incarnation, and a witness to its historical development ... Jeff's interdisciplinary approach is to use intensely personal, although highly skilled dance technique, intercut with abstract text that refers to the material world without direct realism ... re-creates the feeling or perception of being alive, without attempting to recreate it literally." - Sarah Schulman

Jeff McMahon's performances sear us in a fever dream of poetics, politics and unflinching personal witness. His fierce collision of social texts and equal opportunity "j'accuse" claims a rigorous performance vision that unsparingly unpacks society and self. From a child's peering over the backseat of his Grandmother's car driving thru L.A., to an unblinking witness to 9/11 McMahon takes us on a wild journey thru our times. Buckle your seat belt and dare to ride shotgun as you turn the pages of this powerful collection." - Tim Miller, Performer

Sarah Schulman described McMahon as “a pioneering practitioner of what was once known of as “the talking dancer… an originator of the form in its post-modern incarnation, and a witness to its historical development.” Mark Russell says the “beautiful collection of works pop off the page.” According to Tim Miller, “McMahon’s performances sear us in a fever dream of poetics, politics and unflinching personal witness. His fierce collision of social texts and equal opportunity “j’accuse” claims a rigorous performance vision that unsparingly unpacks society and self.”


on Vimeo



JEFF MCMAHON is a writer, performer and filmmaker presented since 1980 by numerous venues in the Americas, UK and Europe. Fellowships from the NEA, NY Foundation for the Arts, and funding from the NY State Council on the Arts and Arizona Commission on the Arts. MFA from Writing Program, School of the Arts, Columbia University, and BA in Interdisciplinary Art from SUNY/Empire State College. Since 2001, he has taught in the School of Film, Dance and Theatre, Arizona State University, where he is Associate Professor. Lives in Arizona and New York.