In “Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight,” Clifford Geertz examines the Balinese community tradition of setting cocks to fight against one another and betting on the results. Having witnessed the process with his own eyes, Geertz recounts the affair within an analysis of Balinese society, culture, and the preservation of social hierarchy. He refers both in his title and throughout the article to “deep play,” a state of performance or pretending in which “the stakes are so high that it is...irrational for men to engage in it at all” (Geertz, 7). When does performance demonstrate the concept of “deep play?” What determines these stakes?
The events and scenes represented within the film Hell House and the description of the Balinese cockfight produce common results when experienced. They are visceral; they are violent; they are painful. They have the potential to warn against certain actions, while also uncovering them to the public eye. What passions found these sorts of performances in the first place? What drives us to watch? And what motivates us to want to learn more?
The pastor of trinity church has the final say in what goes or does not go into the Hell House. In one scene in the chilling documentary, he sits at a roundtable discussion with other leaders of the church regarding the creative process of the exhibit. Interestingly, the pastor deems only sexuality the point at which the stakes are too high. Any depiction of sexuality, regardless of the relationship between the actors, is off limits. In Hell House, seemingly nothing else crosses the line: abuse, assault, and suicide can all be seamlessly incorporated into the performance. Whether the perverse spectacles provided by Trinity Church serve as a catharsis, an outlet for sin, or simply a service to God, most sensible audiences would argue that any of the acts in the Hell House are in the territory of “deep play” - the performance accesses incredibly deep-rooted emotions and fears.