Tereza Volánková Czech Republic: Zapětdvanáct (11:55)

Zapětdvanáct (11:55 or five-to-twelve) is an exciting young theater ensemble based in Prague. Their work is primarily devised and improvisational in nature, using specific topics and themes instead of pre-set theater texts as the basis for their work. The group was founded by a class of graduates from DAMU (the Theater Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague) in 2014. Building on successful devised performances during their training, the group began their move into the professional world together.  In Summer 2014, 11:55 won a residency in Prague, which enabled them to begin looking at contemporary art and theater through the lens of the younger generation using their own reactions to the contemporary world. They have worked with several prominent directors in Prague, including Petra Tejnorová, Jiří Havelka, and Jan Mikulášek. Since 2015, the ensemble has been primarily presenting at the multi-disciplinary performance space Jatka78, which also presents circus, contemporary dance, and other theater pieces.

Play Synopsis: A Facebook page becomes a live, in-your-face experience in this piece devised by Volánková and her collaborators at 11:55. Together, they took actual Facebook posts and created an immersive dialogue in which internet types—like the gourmet, the innocent girl, the voyeuristic man, and the drunk guy—inadvertently give out lots of personal information while posting in an online group.  The play makes us consider whether we really mean to share these things when we use social media.