Compass

21:21 (Croatia), Simone Aughterlony / Verein für allgemeines Wohl (Germany) and Teater ITD (Croatia)

“Compass” has been developed within the two years research project “Twins”, initiated by Zagreb based dance company 21:21. The first production of the Twins project brings together Simone Aughterlony, a Berlin and Zürich based choreographer and performer, the Croatian dancer and choreographer Petra Hraščanec, and the Croatian dramaturg Saša Božić.
 
The production is formulated as a dance and theater response to the ancient Greek epic poem “Odyssey” by Homer and to Ágota Kristóf’s trilogy of novels. Although both of the works are deceptively naive, the narrative structure of Odyssey and Trilogy form the architecture of a fictional labyrinth that can be read as a personal journey into the intimate universe but also as a parable for the new Europe. Odyssey, an epic song about the sea and maritime adventures, has ironically been transformed into an exploration of solitude. The breath of sea salt and algae, the vastness of the shore and the secret piers, the grave silence of the gulf, the winds and storms, the flash of lightning and the darkness, the birds and the fish, the flickering of the sails and the scum, the mysterious rides and the desperate shipwrecks serve as the proof that we are essentially alone and always perceived as strangers on new shores, even as we are intimately entwined.

Again, we are faced with the dystopia of togetherness. Our curiosity leads us to voice interest in the fragility of disappearing and the cruelty of separation. Wet with tears or soaked by storms, the creation of myths around our bodies provides temporary orientation to cope with the passage of time.

Concept and Choreography: Simone Aughterlony, Petra Hrascanec, Sasa Bozic | Performance: Simone Aughterlony, Petra Hrascanec | Sound design: Hahn Rowe | Light design: Bruno Pocheron, Miljenko Bengez | Costumes: Ana Savic-Gecan | Producers: Andrea Remetin (21:21), Sina Kießling (Verein für Allgemeines Wohl), Silvija Stipanov (Teatar ITD) | Production: 21:21 | Co-produced by the International Coproduction Fund of the Goethe-Institut | Supported by City of Zagreb, Ministry of Culture of Republic of Croatia, Stadt Zürich Kultur, Kanton Zürich Fachstelle Kultur, and Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia