DO THE CHARLESTON

Ticking toward a 2015 explosion, performance-art time bomb Taylor Mac continues workshopping his magnificently ambitious “24-Hour Concert of the History of Popular Music” with this American Songbook evening dedicated to tunes of the ’20s. A 2013 version included renditions of “Bye Bye Blackbird,” “Big Rock Candy Mountain,” “Happy Days Are Here Again,” and other bittersweet pre-Depression hits, all tucked into the story of conflicted couple Barry and Larry. Expect incisive and hilarious cultural commentary, potentially uncomfortable audience participation (e.g., the oldest man in the room coerced into a dance with the youngest woman), and yet another spectacular Machine Dazzle costume. A shamanic deconstructor, Mac uses cabaret and drag tropes to demystify and celebrate popular music. His work is discomforting, revealing, and ultimately liberating.

Wed., March 5, 8:30 p.m., 2014