MEMBERSHIP TRIAL DARKNESS
Led by performing artist Julie Kunz and together with lighting designer Michael Breiner, the experiment explores the fundamental question: “Can we learn to accept the darkness as part of our being and thus achieve a more nuanced and reassuring relationship with the world and ourselves?”
Excerpt from the intention report:
“Darkness has qualities that don’t come into their own. It’s democratic and open-minded. It has the ability to create community and understanding, as in the darkness we erase parts of our identity and are taken back to a common starting point. It has been demonized and rejected by societies and religions – but the fact is that darkness is dominant in the universe we inhabit and perhaps deserves better.
In fear of the dark, we constantly surround ourselves with light from buildings, lamps and screens. In this light, we continuously relate to our own identity and it seems to us absolutely necessary to create the possibility to go into total darkness and connect to an impure energy, to a non-committal community, to silence, emptiness, peace”
TRIAL PERIOD
The trial will take place in Wittmaack from Monday, January 23rd for three weeks. There will be screenings along the way, which will be announced here and via Facebook.
Read the trial’s statement of intent here
BACKGROUND FOR TRIALS
In the fall of 2015, Michael Breiner held Conversations in the Dark at the Danish National School of Performing Arts, which was an Artistic Development Company project (KUV). The concept of KUV is relatively new at Scenekunstskolen. The basic idea of KUV is that teachers work with students and other professionals to develop an artistic research project. A form of basic research and further development of the performing arts in practice.
The KUV team consisted of Anja Ceti Andersen (astrophysicist at the Nils Bohr Institute), Sara Topsø Jensen (artistic director of Carte Blanche), Bo Madvig (actor and performer), Emilie Bendix (stage director), Rasmus Kreiner (sound designer) and Rikke Lund Heinsen (teacher and reflection partner). Michael Breiner acted as overall project coordinator and stage manager.
Conversations in the Dark was a pilot project exploring the potential of darkness. A space of total darkness was created. Here, different disciplines were invited to talk, along with an audience. The theme of the conversations was dark but with a personal professional angle. Michael wanted to investigate two things: Firstly, whether the darkness could be used as a tool for the interlocutors, and secondly, whether it was possible to stage the investigative laboratory as a performance for an audience.
The result of Conversations in the Dark was, Yes – darkness has the potential to promote dialog and darkness is a really good tool for this, and yes – you can easily stage an investigative laboratory as a performing arts product. This is particularly interesting as it opens up the possibility of involving the audience already in the research phase of a performing arts production and at the same time exploiting this commercially and artistically.