La MaMa, in Association with Tamar Rogoff Performance Projects, Presents DROP DEAD…GORGEOUS

Tamar Rogoff’s Drop Dead…Gorgeous, a body-horror-esque dance set in a game show that gives contestants the chance to shed pounds, gain inches, and look younger, receives its World Premiere, Friday, October 17, 2025, 8:00 PM, at La MaMa in New York City. The evening-length multimedia work will have 11 performances through November 2. From the ballet world’s preoccupation with an ideal body type, to a mass culture with promises of consumer happiness, credit card in hand, Drop Dead…Gorgeous moves from humor to pathos to propose that all bodies are inherently beautiful and deserving of love.

In four acts, Drop Dead…Gorgeous brings the audience into the studio of a TV game show offering contestants the chance to win their dream body. Rogoff’s cast of four includes a curvy dancer, an older dancer, a performer portraying an underweight 17-year-old ballet dancer, and an actor as the charismatic yet troubled Game Master. As they compete to shed pounds, gain inches, and reverse the aging process, the host offers the audience the opportunity to buy their way to beauty. A video of 60 extras function as a Greek chorus and increasingly hysterical TV audience.

“Drop Dead…Gorgeous is the culmination of my life-long exploration of difference,” says Rogoff. “Finding the beauty in movement is less about how a body looks and more about how a dancer embodies their authentic sensuality,”

Drop Dead…Gorgeous is set to original music composed by Avi Fox-Rosen. Cast members include Gina Bonati, Gardiner Comfort, Gerlanda Di Stefano, and Shaena Kate. Sara Gierc serves as assistant director, and the work features video and scenic design by Lianne Arnold, costume design by Nicole Slaven, and lighting by Philip Trevino. Dr. Judith Brisman, psychologist, author, and eating disorder treatment specialist, serves as an advisor to Rogoff. Rachel Stires is company manager for Tamar Rogoff Performance Projects.

Post-Performance Talkbacks

Audience talkbacks follow each performance. Rogoff and cast members will be joined by experts from the medical and performing arts fields to discuss issues of eating disorders, body dysmorphia, and training regimens. Guest panelists scheduled to appear include psychologist Dr. Judith Brisman, New York Theatre Ballet founder Diana Byer, performance psychology specialist Dr. Linda Hamilton, and Lexi Monroe, executive director of Butterfly Beautiful.

Drop Dead…Gorgeous will be performed at La MaMa, The Downstairs, located at 66 East Fourth Street in New York City. Tickets are priced at $30, $25 for seniors and students and are available at lamama.org.

The first 10 tickets purchased for each performance are priced at $10 each.