Chameleons are known for their color-changing abilities, allowing them to camouflage or to stand out against the surroundings. In Bennyroyce Royon’s solo performance, CHAMELEON, which premiered this past weekend, Royon plays with their surroundings in order to hide-in-plain-sight, transform, and adorn themselves in prominent display. Through improvisation and a constant transformation of their costumed exterior, Royon’s movement explores “reinvention, creativity and queer joy.”
Photo by Jim Coleman.A co-production with Velocity Dance Center and Royon, CHAMELEON premiered at the Filipino Community Center in Columbia City, which has been a cultural hub and community gathering place for the Filipino diasporic community since 1935. The aromas of Chef Jonah Alayah’s food and drink service float through the performance space, welcoming the regulars and those who are coming to FCS for the first time.
There is a curtained red stage, a permanent fixture in the space, and below the stage lies a metallic geological landscape, with double-sided gold and silver mylar laid across the ballroom floor. Clusters of shimmering crumpled mounds catch light in their crevices and reflect across the space all the way to a stalagmite-like column forming its way up the stairs to the stage.
In the corner, a particularly large boulder of crumpled mylar shifts with subtle motions. Look closely to see a pair of feet visible in the small hole at the base of this living sculpture. An internal light source flickers ambers and pinks, accompanied by the crackling sounds of fire. The boulder raises to stand, and with two legs sticking out from below, slowly traverses the space. As the light catches different contours of the boulder’s edge, the creature eludes recognition; we can almost make out a large face, with brow ridges and nose bridges.
The boulder leans forward into the audience, moving their gaze rapidly from side to side, craning towards us and making direct connections with the crowd. They lean away and gravity tumbles them across the stage. They fall to the ground, their foot catching the seam of the floor, a tectonic chasm that alters the environment and rips the gold floor in two. The boulder pauses, resting, waiting.
Photo by Jim Coleman.Without ceremony Royon reveals their full form, clad in a black leotard, and they begin crawling along the floor, rocking their body forward and back, arching and swirling across the space. They are searching for what comes next. Searching for the next layer or reveal.
The soundscape, designed by Aaron Michael Butler, creates another layer of the space to blend into and resound in contrast. The sound of Royon’s feet walking over the crumpled mylar, and the crinkling as it unfolds, is accompanied by echoed layers of the same crinkling sound. Other found sounds – resembling oceans, airports, rain, fires, and even fragments of text, as a voice speaks barely audible words – call to a faint and blurred memory.
As Royon pulls a sheet of mylar over their head and hums the melody to “Que Sera Sera,” we get a glimpse into their inner emotional world. The shimmering sheet folds in such a way that Royon’s face is reflected in profile three times over, in different angles. Tears fall down their cheeks and seep into the melody. Whether the tears were joyous or melancholic, there is a supple acceptance in Royon’s tenor and posture. As the song’s lyrics suggest, “whatever will be will be,” Royon seems to be releasing their preconceived notions of self, in order to accept who they are and will be. A familiar and nostalgic melody among Filipinos, the song plays in its fullness over the speakers, and many in the audience instantly join in, singing along and swaying, shared emotions washing through the room.
Royon continues their multi-faceted evolution of self in a moment of wardrobe transformation–tying the mylar into a headdress, gathering strips into a floor length skirt, with the finishing touches of sleeves and heels. We got a peak into another facet of Royon, with their energized footwork and a celebratory ballroom strut, inviting the audience to uplift and cheer them on.
Photo by Jim Coleman.We all have a “this is me” piece inside of us, and many solo shows become that piece: a container that lets us explore the complexities of being a person in this world, made of myriad parts, inspired and influenced by countless forces. CHAMELEON seems to be that for Royon. An invitation for us to witness them as they share their self–an invitation to empathize, to be curious, and to celebrate the layers shed and the selves embraced.
And celebrate we did. As Royon adorns themself in pieces of the space, now an ornate wearable costume, they have found a way to camouflage into their environment while also standing out. They are glowing, inside and out. The audience cheers them on as they ascend the stairs and exit into the spotlight behind the red curtain of the stage.
Bennyroyce Royon’s CHAMELEON premiered September 4-6, 2026 as part of Velocity Dance Center’s season at the Filipino Community Center. For more information visit Velocity’s website. Featured image by Jim Coleman.
