David Gordon's The Matter was performed on April 1st and 2nd, 1972, in a large white room at the Merce Cunningham dance studio in New York City. Spectators and performers, indistinguishable from one another except for an occasional nude body, were let in together about twenty minutes before the dance was to begin. The room was empty: mirrors spanned a wall at one end; a stage with steps jutted a little into the space at the other end. The floor was large and well-lighted.

The distinction between performers and nonperformers was noticeable only as individuals found places to sit: spectators sat at what could be considered the front of the performing area on and around church pews facing the dance floor and along the opposite (back) wall on window ledges; performers, most carrying unobtrusive bundles of clothing and shoes, settled along the mirrored wall on the dance floor.