Theater in the raw

THE LIVE ARTS Festival and Philly Fringe are getting naked this year. Sure, there are always elements of nudity during the city's premier arts festivals, but this year in particular puts naked performers at the forefront.

"There's an empowerment in performing scantily clad or nude. It felt a little bit on the edge, a little bit off center, a little bit extra loud," said choreographer Brian Sanders. "We see a nude painting, we don't consider it that cutting-edge. There's something about the live nude performance that gives it an extra level of potency."

But not all naughty bits are created equal. Some shows use nudity to shock and titillate, while other use it for the opposite purpose. The Daily News presents you with a complete guide to nudity at this year's Live Arts Fest and Philly Fringe.

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Show: "The Gate Reopened" by Brian Sanders' JUNK

Synopsis: Sanders reimagines an older piece ("The Gate") featuring dancers grappling, climbing and propelling themselves around a 20-foot-high cylindrical octagon, a/k/a "a playground for the insane."

Who's naked? The dancers

Why naked? "I would align the dance use of nudity with sculpture and painting," Sanders said. "We are a live sculpture, and what is more beautiful than the human body?" (See also "Private Places," choreographed by Jumatatu Poe.)

Discomfort factor: It's hard to pay attention to nudity when there's a 20-foot octagon to explore.

If you go: Pier 9, 121 N. Columbus Blvd., 10 p.m. Sept. 14-15 and 21-22; 8 p.m., Sept. 16 and 18-20; $28-35.

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Show: "UNTITLED FEMINIST SHOW" by Young Jean Lee's Theater Company

Synopsis: Explores the female identity in a wordless dance piece that, Lee emphasized, doesn't skimp on the laughs.

Who's naked? A group of performers with "female-coded bodies," who don't necessarily identify as women, Lee said. "I see a lot of nudity in New York, but when I see it, it's a specific type of body, it's an actor's body or a dancer's body. The performers don't all have that type of body. I feel like that's pretty rare, to see a female-coded body that's not super thin."

Why naked? "I wanted the performers to be as free with their identity as possible, Lee said. "If you put on clothes or makeup, people ascribe stuff to you. But when you're nude, there's less of it."

Discomfort factor: Audience members have told Lee that after about 10 minutes, the more shocking aspects of the nudity dissipated.

If you go: Philadelphia Theatre Company's Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad St., 9 p.m. Sept. 19-21, $28-$35.

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Show: "Bang" by Charlotte Ford

Synopsis: "The starting point of the show was threefold: to see if we could be funny and sexy at the same time; to try and answer the question 'What do women want?'; and to find a new representation of female sexuality that was about desiring rather than being desired," said Ford.

Who's naked? Three of the city's best performers: Ford, Lee Etzold and Sarah Sanford.

Why naked? Performer and director Ford didn't start out to get naked, but it emerged organically from the piece. "If that sells tickets, that's awesome, but for me, this is a clown piece," Ford said.

Discomfort factor: Unlike "UNTITLED FEMINIST SHOW," the nudity isn't meant to de-gender the performers, but Ford sees similar effects in her piece. After enough nudity, the audience is no longer shocked and it becomes commonplace.

If you go: Christ Church Neighborhood House, 20 N. American St., 8 p.m. Friday and Monday-Wednesday; 3 and 8 p.m. Saturday; 6 p.m. Sunday; 8 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, $23-35.

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Show: "I Hate Monologues" and "The Alphabet Play" by the MacKnight Foundation

Synopsis: In "Monologues," an actor bemoans the serious nature of Shakespeare, while "Alphabet" is 26 short plays featuring each letter, like a warped "Sesame Street."

Who's naked? In "Monologues," it's a spanked actor. In "Alphabet," the letter X is X-rated.

Why naked? "In the 'X' portion of the dictionary, there are no verbs. They're having a strip game of cards. It's just a fun little piece," said Bill McKinlay of the MacKnight Foundation. "You say the letter X, you think nudity and X-rated. It's not a monumental mental exercise."

Discomfort factor: Brief nudity in larger performances is probably less than you see in a regular hour of premium cable.

If you go: Both at Shubin Theatre, 407 Bainbridge St. "I Hate Monologues": 8 p.m. Sept. 15; 7 p.m. Sept. 16; 7:30 p.m. Sept. 18 and 20; 4:30 p.m. Sept. 21-22, $15. "The Alphabet Plays": 3:30 p.m. Sept. 15; 2:30 p.m. Sept. 16; 7:30 p.m. Sept. 17 and 19; 8 p.m. Sept. 21; 7 p.m. Sept. 22, $15.

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Show: "Rub" by Gunnar Montana and Jasmine Zieroff

Synopsis: In a postapocalyptic future where humans have died out, femme-bots put on a show for no one to watch.

Who's naked? Pretty much everyone.

Why naked? "I wanted to take the woman and create this mechanical avant-garde creature and break her down until she's the essence of female. It's a contrast of the hard environment and the beautiful body," said Montana.

Discomfort factor: "It's a strip tease. It's supposed to be sensual and get you aroused," Montana said.

If you go: Latvian Society, 531 N. 7th St., 10 p.m. Friday and Sept. 13 and 16; midnight Saturday, Sunday, Thursday-Sept. 15, Sept. 21-22; 10 p.m. and midnight Sept. 20, $20.

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Show: "Food Court" by Back to Back Theatre

Synopsis: A dreamlike, near-death experience set in a mall, soundtracked to the music of the Necks, who change the score each performance.

Who's naked? A troupe of actors with perceived disabilities (in the parlance of the theater company).

Why naked? The vibe of the show is supposed to be surreal, and nudity becomes a function of that.

Discomfort factor: Everything about the show is meant to throw the audience for a loop. Nakedness is no exception.

If you go: Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, 300 S. Broad St., 8 p.m. Sept. 20-22, $30.

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Show: The Big Nude Pinhole Shoot by R.A. Friedman

Synopsis: This is actually an art show ("Silver, Carbon and Brass: The Steampunk Photography of RA Friedman") in which the local photographer will discuss his work using an old-fashioned pinhole camera and recruit models for a photo shoot at the Rotunda on Sept. 17.

Who's naked? You!

Why naked? Friedman has a background in painting and has always worked with the nude figure. It's also pragmatic: "For the type of photography I'm doing, a broad expanse of skin photographs better than a draped figure."

If you go: Ven and Vaida Gallery, 18 S. 3rd St. Reception: 6-9 p.m. Friday. Artist talk: 7-10 p.m. Tuesday. Free. Exhibit runs through Sept. 30.

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Show: "Arguendo" by the Elevator Repair Service

Synopsis: An in-progress, staged re-enactment of the oral argument of Barnes v. Glen Theatre, a 1991 case on whether erotic dancing is protected under the First Amendment as freedom of expression. "Part of what's going on is all a little ridiculous because it's mostly older men sitting around deciding whether this stripper had artistic intentions," said director John Collins.

Who's naked? No one, but the show is an interesting look at American hang-ups about the naked body.

Why naked? No one is naked. Get your mind out of the gutter.

Discomfort factor: "I don't know at what point we'll get to a point where sex is not provocative," Collins said. "It's true we use all sorts of cultural relationships to sex, but we all have chemical relationships to sex. It gets at something more profound about what we are."

If you go: Arcadia Stage, Arden Theatre Company, 40 N. 2nd St., 1 p.m. Sept. 16, $18. Discussion follows at 2 p.m.