And the people – those hidden behind fallen trees and soaked after crossing the swamps, as well as those bringing them water and dry clothes. There are also birds and wild animals, which turn out to be less frightening at night than the border guards and the armed military.
Description
"Empire" is a performative installation inspired by the image of the marching forest from Macbeth and the experiences of migrants and those assisting at the Polish-Belarusian border. We draw inspiration from Shakespeare's text and the images of the humanitarian crisis at the border to reflect on survival strategies during flight, how nature can support humans in times of crisis, how to help refugees, and how acts of solidarity are criminalized by authorities. Finally, how much evil lies in power that is unaccountable?
The performance was created with the support of the Shakespeare Festival in Gdańsk as part of the ShakespeareOFF competition and thanks to an artistic scholarship from the City of Warsaw for Alicja Borkowska, which enabled work on the stories from the Polish-Belarusian border.
Premiere at the Shakespeare Festival in Gdańsk: August 3, 2023. Premiere in Warsaw: November 14, 2023.
Colophon
directorial and dramaturgical supervision, texts based on stories from the Polish-Belarusian border:
Alicja Borkowska
visualizations and video
Adrien Cognac
music
Ray Dickaty
texts based on "Macbeth"
Artur Pałyga
performance, dance
Warwara Ściepanowa, Oma Ukwuoma
music (accordion), performance
Alexey Vorsoba
choreographic supervision, performance, dance
Łukasz Wójcicki
costume consultation
Maja Skrzypek
photographic cooperation
Agata Kubis
The performances of the play "The empire" are co-financed from the funds of the Capital City of Warsaw.