Vi Henviser til Journalen
Performative installation
Presented af Villa Kultur in Østerbro, Copenhagen, Denmark
29th of February and 1st of March 2020
Director: Julie Marie Mønsted
Sound Designer: Rebekka Sofie Bohse Meyer
Costume Designer: Barbora Skabourske
Performers: Tone Haldrup Lorenzen, Tal Reuveny, Emilia Jansso, Rokaïa Barr Napoli
Vi Henviser til Journalen is an investigation into our fear of illness and death. Four performers represent physical decay and mental breakdown through their interaction with an atmospheric ambient soundscape.
In our necro-aesthetic universe, fear of death is at the forefront and illness is brought to the extremes as we are all going to die. Here, fantasies about death are nourished and is visualised by grotesque physical deformities. In a society where diagnoses are littered upon the people our performers ’the sufferers’ generously provides an insight into their painful and difficult existence.
The soundscape establishes four tableaux that in dialogue with the performance-part creates the overall structure of the piece. Organic sounds such as the sound of breath, scratching on the skin, crunching of broken bones etc. are mixed with generated sounds that altogether constructs a neurotic cosmos. It is combined with an a capella choir piece song by the performers.
Extracts from chorus
Why us, why me?
Now it hurts in my knee.
Do they need to amputee?
They will never give us any guarantee?
La la la Crushed bones and skeletons,
La la la la infections, depression
La la la heartburn and hemorrhoids,
nothing is worse than the fear of dying
We are going to die
When will we say goodbye
Corona-virus we can’t deny,
just sing us a fucking lullaby
With inspiration from “Bouffon” known as “The Art of Mockery” in contemporary theatre history, akin to ‘the grotesque’ and the Burleque-tradition, we direct the spot light on to the society’s diagnosis-happiness. The deform bodies of ‘the sufferers’ consume the space with partly choreographed, partly improvised sequences. The fact that they are challenged physically exudes a dark humour.
‘We refer to the medical chart’ confront taboos of the detestable that we tend to neglect; illness and death. Without any filter.
The aesthetics is highly valued and is kept minimalistic and sterile. The costumes are designed as individual deviant figures. As a contrast to the physical brutality the costumes are kept white; the skin, hair and costume will reflect a purity through the use of make-up and textile material. Countless medical products cover the bar and euthanasia in the form of drinks are served in the bar.
Read more about the performance at https://www.villakultur.dk/kalender/vi-henviser-til-journalen
Photos from the performance at Villa Kultur
Photographs by Niels Vogensen Biasevich