After the Birds

DESCRIPTION OF THE PERFORMANCE:

"Po Ptakach / After the Birds" is the second part of the triptych created by CHOREA and Earthfall. It is a result of another international theatrical project which originated in Cardiff (Wales) in December 2005. Using two absolutely different aesthetics and working methods, the two groups jointly created a brand new language on the border of genres and styles. CHOREA and Earthfall confront ancient Greek choral songs with modern music, urban space choreography and fears of the modern world.

We have attempted to answer the question: what is left after Aristophanes’ "The Birds", ancient Greeks and their culture, and what do we have in common with them? We must remember that Athens in Aristophanes’ times went through devastating wars with Sparta, collapsing democracy, political crises, plots and power struggles among different political factions. Social and religious values started to crumble. In such circumstances, there always appear some guides to a brave new world which may be created on the ruins of the old one thanks to utopian ideas, populist slogans, manipulations and operating exactly between the ones who succeeded and the ones who lost. Both these groups cannot exist without one another, so, in the areas where their paths cross, the power belonging to the first group and the dreams belonging to the second one must be taken away. Everything must be surrounded by a wall, guards must be employed and strangers must be driven away, as it happened in Cloud Cuckoo Land – the Aristophanes’ ideal new state. But from behind the tall walls, gods look like corrupted idiots, and people look like dwarfs deprived of dreams. Can a paradise on Earth be built only behind barbed-wire fences; do all world healing visions become equally bitter and dangerous when we start putting them into practice? During the play performed in a post-communist state, in the global terrorism era, we pose these questions not only to Aristophanes...

INFORMATION ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Earthfall Dance - Formed in 1989 by Jessica Cohen and Jim Ennis with a policy of forging radical choreography with live music and strong visual imagery, Earthfall rapidly established itself as an outstanding exponent of innovative physical dance theatre. Earthfall seeks a personal honesty, passion and economy of movement to create vibrant and dynamic contemporary work. Earthfall has performed at many major festivals worldwide, and has featured in numerous TV and Radio broadcasts. The company has received several awards for its live performance and film work: the Bafta Cymru Award for Best Short Film, and the Theatre in Wales Award for Best Dance/Physical Theatre Production.

Jessica Cohen - performer, choreographer, director and lecturer. Trained at the London school of Contemporary Dance from 1976 -1979. Cohen became a principal performer with Moving Being the Welsh based multi-media theatre company in 1979 and was with them for 7 years until 1986 touring extensively throughout Europe. In 1987 she was awarded an Arts Council travel bursary to study Martial arts, Peking opera, black ink drawing and mandarin in Taiwan. On her return she created and toured two solo works. 1989 saw her first collaboration with Director Jim Ennis who directed her second solo work. Later that year, together with Jim Ennis she formed Earthfall. Earthfall was founded to create multi-disciplinary performance work. Ennis and Cohen also pursued the notion of choreography and politics which they termed Choreopolitik. Earthfall has performed throughout the world, winning awards for its performance and film work including a BAFTA CYMRU award for best short film. Cohen is on the Board of Directors for the Independent Theatre Council and is a national advisor to the Arts Council of Wales.

Jim Ennis - performer, director, writer, choreographer and lecturer. Training in England at Dartington Hall College of Arts from 1974-1977. In 1978 he founded a performance company and moved to Holland collaborating with Performance Artists and the Dutch National Ballet also he attended Grotowski's Theatre Laboratory in Poland. In 1978-1983 he was a principal performer and collaborator with Dutch international Theatre Research Group Kiss, touring throughout the world. He authored 3 plays and co-authored The Theatre Research Book. In 1984 Ennis joined the Cardiff Laboratory Theatre in the UK, he was also invited to perform with the Gardzienice Theatre Association, Poland, remaining with them until 1989 also in that year he formed Earthfall with Cohen. With Earthfall Ennis initially started as Director/Performer but then concentrated solely on directing, choreographing and co-devising all the company's works. Ennis continues his relationship with Polish theatre with Earthfall co- directing three works with Theatre Association Chorea. Ennis has taught extensively at several universities including being a lecturer in theatre studies at Yale University USA.

CHOREA Theatre - was founded in 2004 in Lublin, as a result of collaboration between two groups of performers. First group, 'The Ancient Orchestra', was developing musical and rhythmical work. Second group, 'Dances of the Labyrinth', was experimenting on movement and dance. Since 2004, before they found their residence in Lodz in 2007, they have been working in several locations. The company was first based in Naleczow, Srebrna Gora and Warsaw, they cooperated with Erthfall Dance Theatre in Cardiff (Wales). Since 2007 they established a permanent base in the city of Lodz, co-founding with Lodz Art Centre a cultural institution named Fabryka Sztuki (Art Factory) and they own an amazing industrial theatre spaces (for rehearsals, performances and workshops) situated in the 19th Century factories, named Art_Inkubator in Fabryka Sztuki in Lodz.
During 15 years of activity CHOREA Theatre fully developed its educational and artistic work. CHOREA artists organized many international workshop sessions, transnational artistic projects, several editions of their own International Theatre Festival Retroperspektywy and nationwide Theatre Festival Perspektywy, and created more than 40 theatre productions, performances, and concerts. In 2015 CHOREA artists recorded a musical album 'Lullabies' and published actors training handbook 'Actors phisical training. From individual to group actions'. CHOREA group collaborates with artists from all over the world: USA, Great Britain, Israel, Spain, India, Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Syria, Japan, Russia, Belarus, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Georgia, Moldova, etc.
During last years CHOREA Theatre presented their performances, concerts and intensive workshop sessions all over the world. In 2009 CHOREA performed on International Meeting on Ancient Drama Festival in Delphi, (Greece). In 2010 we cooperated with Rosanna Gamson Worldwide Theatre in Los Angeles (USA). In 2011 we presented our work in Escena Contemporanea Festival in Madrid (Spain) and in Mayerhold Theatre Centre in Moscow (Russia). In 2012 we visited Stage Centre in Tel Aviv (Israel). In 2011, 2012 and 2013 we performed on Bharat Rang Mahotsav - the biggest international Theatre Festival in India. In 2014 and 2015 we showed our performances in Art Carnuntum Verein für Kunst Geschichte Theater Kultur Festival in Art Carnuntum (Austria). In 2015 we presented our work in Luxembourg (Luxembourg) and in Chisnau (Moldova). In 2015 and 2016 we performed in Tbilisi International Festival of Theatre (Georgia). In 2017 we performed in Berlin (Germany), Stockholm (Sweden) and in St.Petersburg (Russia). In 2018 we visited Baerum Kulturhus and sandvika Teater in Oslo (Norway), we leaded an intensive workshop session, in terms of "Polish Theatre Days” during II International Theatre Festival TheATRIUM 2018 in Drama Theatre in Klaipeda (Lithuania), performed in Danube Bend Theatre in Vac (Hungary) in terms of V4 Festival and Theatre Meeting 2018, and performed on Festivalul International de Teatru Pentru Publicul Tanar in Iasi (Romania).

Tomasz Rodowicz - Artistic Director of CHOREA Theatre. Theatre director, actor, musician, educator, theatre instructor, university lecturer, earlier also a historian of philosophy. Born in 1951 in Warsaw. Graduate of the Faculty of History of Philosophy at the Warsaw Theological Academy. Co-founder of Poland’s first social therapy centre for young drug addicts. He collaborated with Jerzy Grotowski in 1974-1979. Co-founder of the Centre for Theatre Practices 'Gardzienice' and its member in 1977-2003. Co-founder of CHOREA Theatre and its leader since 2004. Artistic director of Fabryka Sztuki in Lodz since 2007. Artistic director of International Theatre Festival Retroperspektywy and Nationwide Theatre Festival Perspektywy. Leader of many international artistic, educational and didactic projects and research expeditions. Innovative musical and physical training expert and theatre workshop specialist. Worldwide authority in leading workshops for actors, dancers, singers, musicians, theatre instructors and culture animators. Author of a handbook 'Actors phisical training. From individual to group actions'.

LINKS:

• Trailer
  
  
• Film "After the Birds" in New Delhi
  
  
• Photos - from CHOREA Theatre archives 
  
  
• Photos - by Alexandra Galambova
  
  
• Photos - by Dariusz Gackowski