Downtown Phoenix Voices was an ongoing series of profiles on the many diverse and inspirational voices in the downtown Phoenix community that the Downtown Devil has decided to bring back. To read the previous installment in the series, click here.
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Art exhibitions, stand-up comedy, performance art and a partridge in a pear tree — performer Leslie Barton has moved from one art form to the next with ease and is always expanding her diverse skill set.
Barton, 49, has done everything from managing the music venue and gallery Modified Arts to performing her own stand-up comedy.
She was intrigued by the idea of performance art and the unique opportunity it offered, as it allowed her to be personal with the audience but also entertain or surprise them, she said.
“People will watch it because you’re in some way violating your own body, or you’re doing something to your body that is interesting to other people, or you’re trying to make a point about politics or humanity through destruction of your own self in a way,” she said. “I enjoy, I guess, destroying myself for the entertainment of others.”
Her performance art was not about making the audience comfortable, but rather about expressing herself.
One of her more violent pieces was inspired by the end of a broken romance. Barton sang “The Twelve Days of Christmas” while her dominatrix friend spanked her as hard as she could with a paddle. Funny? Some members of the audience thought so. Others felt uncomfortable.
“By the time I got to the 12th day of Christmas, she was pretty much whaling on my behind, but I felt like I was exorcising this relationship out of me somehow,” she said. “What got me was how funny people found it. I literally was crying, was begging her to stop. I found it more emotional that the audience found it so hilarious, because I was pouring myself out here. I taught myself a little lesson there that no matter how deep I feel about something, somebody’s going to find it funny. And it may hurt my feelings if they find it funny.”
While Barton said that was one of the last really violent pieces she did, she loves visceral performances like that one. After a pause, she emphatically explained that she does everything out of love, whether it be love for the art or the love of making people laugh.
Liam Murtagh, owner of Bragg’s Factory Diner and member of the ska group Liam and the Ladies, said Barton leaves a lasting impression on people she meets due to her large personality.
“She’s very loud and very over the top and very obnoxious, and I’m drawn to totally obnoxious people,” he said. “When you get to really know her there’s this intelligent, super-caring woman who’s awesome at the same time.”
She grew up learning how to impress some judgmental audiences: elementary school students.
Both of her parents were in the army, so her family didn’t settle down in Phoenix until her seventh-grade year. Her parents were her first supporters in her performance aspirations, even before she realized what she wanted to do.
“We moved so often that I never really got the chance to get a base group of friends to grow up with, so I would just make sure everyone liked me all at once, and a year later I would leave,” Barton said. “But my parents were primarily my very first audience; basically it was just the three of us.”
Her first move into the world of performance was in her late 20s when Barton decided she wanted to be in a band. This decision proved to be harder than expected after she realized the true difficulties of learning guitar; she ranked it as one of the hardest things she has ever done.
Music did not end up being a long-term plan for Barton, but she realized that she liked performing.
“In some ways they’re all kind of fragments of each other,” she said. “The stand-up comedy is also performance art to a certain extent, playing music is part performance art. I’d have to say comedy’s probably my favorite thing right now. Because if it wasn’t my favorite right now, I wouldn’t be doing it.”
Her next performance will be opening for Ron Morey at the Scottsdale Comedy Spot Comedy Club on Oct. 24 and 25 at 8 p.m.
In 2002, Barton co-founded the film festival No Festival Required with Steve Weiss. Ever since then, Weiss has taken every opportunity to work with Barton, and described her as “multidynamic.”
“Sometimes she’s a hurricane within a tornado encased by a cyclone, energy-wise,” he said. “When she commits to something, she really jumps into it. I have always found that working with her makes a project better.”
Barton said holds high standards for herself and other performers.
“I don’t put up with a lot of shenanigans, but I give people a lot of rope,” Barton said. “I go through relationships very quickly. I love unconditionally. … You can have as much rope as you want. If you’re going to hang yourself, go for it.”
Contact the reporter at miranda.reddy@asu.edu
