Who is Googy Ballyhoo?
Bold Visions, Boundless Creativity, and Defiant Expression.
Googy Ballyhoo (Rebecca Fahning) is a Las Vegas-based Social Practice Artist currently pursuing an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts at the University of Nevada, Reno. Googy’s work lives at the intersection of community engagement and theatrical spectacle, using the vibrant language of vaudevillian carnival acts to explore identity, autonomy, and resistance.
As the ringleader of immersive, performative installations, Googy collaborates with communities—particularly those within the LGBTQIA+ spectrum and women-identifying folks—to co-create art that challenges norms and reclaims public space for radical expression. Their performances are rich with humor, magic, and surrealism, transforming traditional art experiences into participatory celebrations of collective voice and creative defiance.
Googy's work can be experienced in galleries, public spaces, and pop-up performances across Nevada and beyond—wherever a tent can be pitched, a stage can be conjured, or a story can be shared.
Enchanting Performances
Bespoke tales for every soul
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Beltane BallGoogy ballyhoo, with Drunk Tarot Roadshow, 2024
The Maypole Game
Artifice Bar and Studio
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Sin City Witches, Witchmas CelebrationStory Time, The Battle of the Oak King and the Holly King, 2022
Artifice Bar and Studio
Your questions answered
Learn more about the artist!
What is my Question and How am I Answering it?
My central question is: How can art serve as a vehicle for community empowerment, resistance, and transformation—particularly for those who live at the intersections of gender, identity, and social marginalization?
I answer this question by engaging communities in participatory art-making that blends performance, ritual, storytelling, and spectacle. By co-creating installations and vaudevillian-style performances, I aim to transform both physical and emotional spaces into stages for liberation, reflection, and joy. These projects often involve workshops, open calls, and collaborative rehearsals where participants help shape the final work.
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What Materials do I Use?My materials span both the everyday and the fantastical—fabric, found objects, papier-mâché, recycled materials, wearable sculpture, and theatrical props. I also work with sound, light, video, and live performance to build immersive environments. The use o...
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What Am I Saying?My work is communicated through multi-sensory, site-specific performances and installations that welcome interaction and disrupt the passive viewing experience. Whether staged in galleries, public parks, or spontaneous street performances, each piece invit...