Reigning toward Aries

In ‘Reigning Toward Aries’ Stephanie O’Connor explores the emotional oscillations of impending parenthood through dusk-drenched scenes that she observes safely from the wings. Visions of goats, thick-fleeced rams, and faceless figures haunt deserted parks and dimly-lit stages, presenting a theatre of quiet chaos. Throughout the ages, the constellation Aries has represented a pocket of space rich with stars, symbolising the cardinal sign of the zodiacal ram and elemental fire, and now also corresponding to the predicted astrological sign of her child. In women, there is an expectation of fertility—of being ripe, red, and fecund. Simultaneously, there is a sense of shame regarding their blood. O’Connor confronts the contradictions of being female, which are entwined with her own ambivalence surrounding an unplanned pregnancy: does her gratitude merely reflect her learned currency regarding worth? Or, like the ram, does it signify new beginnings, strength, determination, and, at the same time, sacrifice? The visual theatre that O’Connor constructs acts as a guide, leading us through these multifaceted confrontations of self and body, never quite landing on a steady foundation.