Devon Dikeou’s installation Between The Acts (Virginia Woolf) consists of nine curtains that replicate the backdrop fabric of famous late night talk show hosts. The curtains vary in color, pattern, and texture, some classically elegant, like Jay Leno’s wine colored velvet, some striking and brash (Conan O’Brian’s metallic stars). The piece was originally shown at NADA art fair in 2014, with eight of the curtains installed in various “in between” locations throughout the fair. The ninth, Johnny Carson the ‘king of late night’ (blue, gold, pink and olive), wrapped Devon’s booth. The installation now resides in the basement at The Dikeou Collection’s Colfax Pop-Up location.

Devon Dikeou, BETWEEN THE ACTS (VIRGINIA WOOLF): JAY LENO, 2014 Ongoing, Variable dimensions

As objects, curtains imply both secrecy and adornment; from the luscious velour of a stage curtain that hides the unformed set of a play to the curtain at a movie rental shop that separates the under 18 crowd from the adult film section. The curtain is a symbol of separation, often covering and indicating the entrance to sacred places or objects. The veil of the temple of Jerusalem signifies the separation between humanity and faith and is torn at the crucifixion of Jesus. Like magical cloaks that bestow the wearer with supernatural powers and bridal veils that are lifted once wedding vows are spoken, the curtains of talk show hosts are aesthetic suggestions of individual cosmic importance, be it comedic or otherwise.

Devon Dikeou, BETWEEN THE ACTS (VIRGINIA WOOLF): CONAN O'BRIEN, 2014 Ongoing, Variable dimensions

As Devon notes in her artist statement, although there are female talk show hosts, there are no female talk show hosts that have curtains as a part of their stage backdrop. Thus there are no women represented in this piece, excepting its title. The title refers to the final and posthumously published novel Between the Acts by the modernist feminist novelist Virginia Woolf. The book centers on a historical pageant-play, which is being performed on the lawn of Pointz Hill, the country house of the family Oliver. As the title suggests, the story is not propelled by the plot of the performance, but rather the way in which the characters are revealed when the screens (or curtains) between inner dialogue and exterior action is broken.

Devon Dikeou, BETWEEN THE ACTS (VIRGINIA WOOLF): JOHNNY CARSON, 2014 Ongoing, Variable dimensions

Miss La Trobe, the theatrical delphic author and director of the pageant, places her actors amongst the trees. With their costumes strewn on the grass, the mystique of what the audience is usually forbidden from seeing is intermingled with the natural world. The play is performed without a curtain and thus the audience, both reader and character, feel as if a secret has been divulged to them. However, the curtain of a comedian or late night talk show host does not have such secrets to divulge. One might imagine finding a brick wall behind their curtains. The curtain of a talk show host contains all the suggested mystery of the symbol and none of the actual divinity. Devon Dikeou suggests with her piece that perhaps women talk show hosts know what Virginia Woolf knew, that to remove a curtain marks the penetration of a mystery.

-Liana Woodward