EMIKO JOZUKAISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily NewsTriston is a multi-talented performance artist (dancer, DJ, event organizer and singer) opting to live in the lesser foreigner populated area of Tarlabaşı. He currently works as a creative arts director at the popular night club ‘The Hall.’ He organises various burlesque performances with his Berlin based dance group ‘Xares’ and set up a series of ‘underground’ parties in ‘Cherie’ at the Hall. Regularly nicknamed ‘Blade’ and ‘Michael Jackson’ on the streets, Triston is also working on his second publication about living in Istanbul.
| Triston has introduced burlesque dancing to the Turkish entertainment sector. |
The creative arts director and the brains behind “Cherie” at the Hall, Triston brings a breath of multicultural cool to the Istanbul night-club scene.
“This city is on the cusp of being a world class [creative] Mecca – I think that it is the next one. They’re ready for it, they’re hungry for it and I am here to feed them,” said Triston, an American.
Having spent time working as a male burlesque dancer, singer and writer in leading creative capitals such as Barcelona, Berlin and New York, Triston is a connoisseur of the entertainment and arts scene. Although he described Istanbul as the most difficult of any of the cities he has ever lived in, he seemed ready to embrace the challenge and bring his creative touch to the city.
An initial invitation to perform and dance at one of Turkey’s most hip clubs, 360 Istanbul, convinced Triston that Istanbul was the place to be for the next period of his creative career.
“When I first came here I intended to stay three weeks, and I’m still here. It’s a great city – the people are nice and they treat me very well. I don’t feel intimidated on the streets or harassed like I did in Germany sometimes. It’s just much more open. There’s a lot for me to learn here and a lot that I can give this city culturally.”
Bringing burlesque to Istanbul
Turkish audiences are receptive to what they don’t typically see, Triston said, but added that burlesque has proven to be too much for some to swallow.
“They think they know what they want but they’re not ready for it. I’ve had burlesque performers here and for some it was too much,” he said.
He pointed to one such incident during a private party thrown for Microsoft at 360. “I brought in a burlesque performer from Spain. They asked me specifically for a burlesque performer. Burlesque performers do a striptease and they wear tassels. They saw it and one person out of maybe 300 complained, so they cut short her last song,” he said.
Triston remained unfazed by the one negative response. He is sure that with the right promotion such occurrences may be avoided.
“The same weekend we came here to the Hall and we didn’t have any problems. I had a separate promotion that clearly stated how things would be – people knew what to expect,” he said.
The Michael Jackson factor
A seasoned traveler, Triston confessed that Istanbul has been the hardest city to adjust to both in terms of work ethics and in the way he looks.
“The procrastination levels are off the charts here – in my country you would be fired. I’ve lived in a lot of Mediterranean countries and it’s slower than any country that I’ve ever lived in. I still haven’t adjusted to the timing nearly a year later,” he said.
Triston, who is African-American, also commented on the strangeness of navigating around a city where nobody resembled him, explaining that it is not uncommon for him to be met with cries of “Michael Jackson” and “Blade” in the streets.
“It’s so strange to be in a city where when I walk around I never see anybody that looks like me. People always point and stare. I’m really in the minority here. There are some Africans here but it’s very rare for you to see an African-American. I’m like a unicorn here and that’s fine, I understand. People’s reactions aren’t going to change overnight. It will take some 10 to 20 years,” he said.
Despite the nicknames and frequent stares, Triston was quick to point out that none of this was meant in a derogatory way. He discussed some of the more serious difficulties that black people face in European countries which claim to be open, yet paradoxically remain more close-minded.
“If you’re Afro-German, you’re not considered German. I don’t like this. I taught in Germany and it just killed me to see children who were not considered German because one parent was not white. In Turkey this problem doesn’t exist. Here you can look Asian, or very European. I may look different but people aren’t telling me to get out of the country, or calling me ‘nigger’ on the streets. These were things that I heard in Germany,” he said.
All in all, Triston said he felt more human in Istanbul; he attributed the labels placed on him by Turks to people simply not knowing, as opposed to spite.
“I am treated like a human being here. More often Turkish people look like everything. I’ve seen some that are so richly red-headed, some are very blonde, some look very Asian, some are dark. I like that. They don’t try and eliminate branches because of what they look like. It’s closer to what I grew up with in America,” Triston said.
Tarlabaşı living
Explaining that he had encountered more cries of “Michael Jackson” in the foreigner-dominated Cihangir neighborhood, Triston said he preferred to live in Tarlabaşı. He commented on how he is less bothered in his neighborhood, as locals are more surprised to see a foreigner living on their street.
“When I go to my house they don’t yell at me or bother me because they are more shocked to find a foreigner living there. They are much nicer, friendlier, they speak hospitably to me and they don’t scream at me,” he said.
Yet he still raises eyebrows among his Turkish friends when he tells them where he is living.
“When I tell my Turkish friends that I’m living there they comment on how dangerous it is. It’s not dangerous but I understand their perception. When you live in an area where there are a lot of foreigners eventually the area gentrifies and gets nicer. I will bet my life that where I live now the prices will be twice as much as today in less than 10 years, probably five,” he said.
Poetry readings
Having just obtained his residency permit, Triston is set to stay in Istanbul for as long as he feels that he is creatively inspired. While simultaneously planning some upcoming music and dance events at “Cherie,” Triston is working on the publication of his second book and recording an album with his band.
He is currently organizing a poetry reading event called “Verses” where people can get together and talk about their Istanbul experiences in the poetic form. “Verses” will take place Dec. 9 and 23 at the Hall, Hüseyinağa Mah., Küçük Bayram Sokak 7.
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