A man and woman deep in conversation, their intimate dialogue glitching and dropping out. The razor-sharp movement of a contemporary dance company, lagging just seconds behind an operatic score. Two sweaty men in the middle of a sexual encounter, bodies freezing in an ecstatic loop.

Buffer is a perception-altering new work by Xavier Cha (Body Drama, Whitney Museum), the 2017 Harkness Foundation Artist in Residence at the BAM Fisher, as part of Performa 17, the citywide festival of performance art. It draws on the astonishing physical and vocal control of actors Babs Olusanmokun and Cassandra Freeman, opera singer Michael Maniaci, dancers, and adult film performers to replicate the experience of digital consumption through strictly analog means. Comprising three scenes that toggle back and forth like browser windows in a state of perpetual buffering, it lays bare the intimate yet alienated relationships we have with the bodies on our screens.

This event contains adult content. It may not be appropriate for ages 17 and under.