The hour of the barbarians

January - March 2023

When Josep Borrell said that Europe is a garden and the rest of the world is a jungle, the artist asked herself questions about the people who live in this jungle and seem to threaten us. She remembered a poem by K. Kavafi, which she had seen quoted several times on the Internet recently. The poem is called "Waiting for the Barbarians". The artist thought that the people from the jungle could probably be described as "barbarians" in the sense of Borrell's statement and she took a closer look at the poem. If Kavafi's words are to be believed, the barbarians will not come, but they could have been a solution. What does that even mean? In the third piece of research, which she dedicates to the chorus of voices on the Internet, which she sees as the equivalent of the chorus in ancient Greek theater, the artist wants to go in search of these barbarians. She often mentions the choir in connection with a turning point that she sees coming. The statements about it, which are first collected, could become the starting point for a theater text.

On the basis of the material collected in the course of this research and the research "On the Unspeakable", an idea for a book project has emerged, which is currently in progress. Title: "The hour of the barbarians."

About the unspeakable

January - March 2022

The research "On the Unspeakable" follows on from the research "After the Plague", which last year became the starting point for the creation of a theater work of the same name. As part of this Internet research, it was not possible to penetrate far below the surface of the researched reservoir of thoughts, there was not enough time. Now the speech, which often manifests itself as a "speech of the unspeakable", is to be explored in more detail. Before the General Assembly in N.Y. last September, António Guterrez said: "We are on the edge of an abyss and moving in the wrong direction". His words are similar to many statements that can be found on the Internet today. Quite a few people seem to be waiting for a catastrophe, but they cannot agree on what form it should take. Amidst the tectonic shifts that are the norm on the internet, there is endless discussion. This research aims to provide an unpolished picture of this discussion. The search for an artistic form that would subsequently be able to realize this image is also part of the research.

This research and the research "The Hour of the Barbarians" both resulted in one and the same project. (see above)

After the plague

January - March 2021

It's hard not to think that time has stood still or imploded with the advent of corona. Probably no one can yet fully imagine the consequences of the social upheaval we are currently experiencing. Will everything ever be the same again? The research project "After the plague" aims to trace the processes that have emerged in society over the past year. Many epidemics have brought about radical changes in people's lives and the plague is a clear symbol of this in Europe - hence the title of the project. The research will take place on the Internet. The focus will be on the question of what the people who express themselves there, mostly anonymously, are actually saying. Another question will be whether this speaking can be seen as an equivalent to the chorus of the ancient Greek theater, which incidentally also wore masks.

Based on the material collected in the course of the research, a theater text was created with the same title as the research. This text was premiered on October 14, 2021 at the Hamburger Sprechwerk and can be read below.

Info about the performance: click here