“This performance is about exhaustion – both mental and physical – linked to the refugee experience,” says Igor Shyshko: “Initially, we carry stones while attempting to perform a classical Russian dance. It’s like breaking through an obstacle. As we progress, the repetitive action leads to exhaustion. For me, this is about what it means to flee war and find yourself somewhere you’re not welcome. I was lucky – through my work, I found stability. But many refugees have nowhere to go. They leave because they can’t stay and arrive in places that don’t accept them.” 

Spell is a ritualistic performance born out of long-term research on somatic forms of resistance and the reappropriation of patterns of fear and mourning. In a kind of no man’s land, two bodies dive into a repetitive struggle for release. Letting go of the burden of the homeland, of memory, of gender norms and dire political struggle, they attempt repeatedly to cross over, to arrive in another existential reality. The dancers, Igor Shyshko and Albina Vakhitova, enter a dialogue with the incantatory text performed by Elke Van Campenhout. The performance text is a kind of ‘spell’ that allows them to articulate cliche and pain, joy and release, ambiguity and struggle. This piece, this spell, does not produce ready-made political messages but unfolds a multi-layered existential field of uncertainty, of what it is to live and work today – as immigrants, cultural workers, and magical beings. 

#from having to leave #to being rejected upon arrival #living as a refugee # as an artist # as a magical being

performers: Igor Shyshko, Albina Vakhitova, Elke Van Campenhout * dramaturgy and text: Elke Van Campenhout * stage and light design: Spela Tusar * music: NEXCYIA * production: Kunst/Werk * coproduction: Site Art Projects * in cooperation with: KVS, VOICES Festival * with support from: Flanders State of the Art

©Raymond Mallentjer