ANTHOLOGY OF SCREAM I: SURPRISE BAG
cabaret happening

11., 12., 13. in 14. 12. 2024, at 20:00
Jenko Hall, Pionirski teater

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Concept and choreography: Tina Habun
Created with and Performed by: Urška Centa, Kristýna Peldová
Space and Costume Design: Hana Podvršič
Dramaturgy: Nik Žnidaršič
Original Music: Eduardo Raon
Exhibition Curatorship: Hana Podvršič
Installation Artists: Vita Tušek, Mori Sikora, Irena Živković Milosavljević, BRAVO Collective (Ana Urbiha, Pika Basaj, Neža Urbiha), KUD Qulenium Ljubljana (Tisa Praprotnik and Viktoria Forte Berlec, Video Material: Urška Mori, Mentor: Ana Romih)
Production: Zavod NEST
Supported by: Ministry of Culture RS

We invite you to a party in a basement theater – the ultimate dance club this December, where expectations meet the unexpected, and where emotional striptease expands the space until it becomes one giant stage. But this party breaks and shatters before it even begins – in a cramped space barely big enough to breathe, let alone dance. The main expression of the happening is a scream: for spaces, for filling those spaces, for self-expression, for fun, for crazy creativity. To create something new, you must go somewhere else, open space in your mind, because there is no actual space. A collage of interruptions and surprises, sharp breaks, and shifting roles and spaces pushes the boundaries of the classic stage and creates a dialogue with the audience, as well as with the inner emotions of two female performers, self-employed in culture. Through the party, they search for a place of creative freedom, where they will share and take each other’s breath away.

A dazzling and shrieking happening with a vulnerable core, long legs, and high heels, through a collaged cabaret form, embraces the entire world of pleasure and risk. Different themes continuously intertwine, and each intervention creates fresh connections, tensions, and relationships. The theater space at this party is but a fleeting moment: glasses touch, bodies connect, and the ecstasy of the party explodes into a scream. The emotional striptease of the two performers retreats backstage, where they can speak and dance out everything. There are no boundaries – only the need for expression, for filling the voids, and for complete freedom, which relentlessly pushes them forward, into the darkness of the theater.

Surprise Bag unfolds as an introspective fairy tale, placing several creators in the act of sharing. The performers enter a world already filled with other expressions and stories; they share the space with young visual artists, whose exhibition and set design create endless echoes and new relationships between the works and bodies.

About the exhibition

The exhibition showcases artists who, through their works, intervene in the scenography of Anthology of Scream, the trilogy by the NEST Collective. The lack of space is a challenge for both contemporary dance and visual art. Frustration over limitations awakens a desire to utilize every available space and opens possibilities for shared use. At the initiative of the collective, the space was opened to young visual artists to co-create a new, unexpected performative environment through their works. Although the artworks explore various themes, their placement and intertwining create connections and relationships, forming a dynamic dialogue between the pieces and the performance that constantly reshapes, unifies, and divides. This shapes an expression – a scream for spaces that long for fulfillment, self-expression, celebration, and free creation.

Available every day before the performance, between 3:00 PM and 6:30 PM

“Anthology of the Scream I: Surprise Bag by Collective NEST is an exciting and witty theatrical happening performed by Urška Centa and Kristýna Peldová (concept and choreography by Tina Habun). It explores the problematic position of female creators in contemporary dance and performance, questioning spaces of creative freedom on multiple levels. The event’s announcement promises the ultimate New Year’s party, but in reality, the audience is confronted with an initial breakdown that leads them through multiple stages, exposing the search for open creative horizons and offering a bitter reflection on the position of contemporary creators in the arts in Slovenia. – Aleš Novak, Artistic Director of the Maribor Theatre Festival (Borštnikovo srečanje)

“The first performance from the trilogy Anthology of the Scream by the NEST platform completely captivated me. In an exceptionally original, witty, and intelligent way, it addresses the horrors of creating within the severely underfunded independent dance scene. The performance, in which the creators never for a moment adopt a victim’s position but instead powerfully reflect on everything we lose in the fight to preserve our artistic integrity, shook me to the core.” – Tina Vrbnjak, actress and principal performer at SNG Drama

“The performance Surprise Bag is infused with a statement from beginning to end. It exposes the issue of marginalization of contemporary dance art while simultaneously proving that some of the most high-quality and exciting theater creators emerge precisely from these margins. The performance is a response to the alarming state of the Slovenian dance scene and acts as a rebellion. Through the performative brilliance of the exceptional Urška Centa and Krystina Példova, paired with the vivid direction of Tina Habun, the performance takes the audience on a journey through immensely witty, touchingly personal, and choreographically masterful scenes. These evoke tears of laughter and leave a bitter echo of their scream. A scream for something very simple: basic working conditions.” – Domen Novak, actor and member of the SNG Drama ensemble