Awakening

Visual theatre, circus-mime show – for one rope, two characters and several fairies

„For many years I mistook myself for someone, who doesn’t exist; and even beyond years, I mistook the impalpable for the impossible. Countless fairies, neither one nor more: that is what I am, the rest is just appearance.”
excerpt from the Hungarian poem “Örvény” (Vortex) by Sàndor Weöres

This theatre show is based on mime, clowning, visual theatre, aerial circus elements, and music. With humour, poetry and self-reflection, it is looking into our own pettiness, cowardice, anxiety, but also our moments of bravery and affection, while we are trying to understand our behaviour as humans. A story about the duality of humankind, displayed by two characters: our two faces – searching for our essential self in the mess of boundaries, dreams, and the never ending process of growing up.

Awakening brings you to a magic world, where you can tell a story without words. This awakening is not leading you to the morning wake-up calls, but to a dream that is full of fun. It wakes you up with that waggish smile on your face, as your dream colors up the greyish world. Here, magic doesn’t require anything else, but a pillow, and if it’s too dark, you light up the sky with the stars that you draw with your own fingers.

Duration: 70 minutes

The production was first presented in September 2018 in Kosice, Slovakia, as the winner of the 2018 Visegrad Fund Performing Arts Residency, that aims to make emerging artists with innovative ideas visible, and is awarded to one group per country in every year. Based upon the Slovakian premier the production was then transferred to Budapest in 2019 to the Artus Studio. The company and the production Awakening has started to gain significant recognition in Hungary, and has started its way internationally in September 2019 at the Bergen Fringe Festival (Norway) and Istanbul Fringe Festival (Turkey). It was also selected for the programs of the Infinite Dance Festival in 2020 (Oradea, Romania) and the 2021 Valley of the Arts festival (Hungary). With the support of the Hungarian Institute in London, in 2021, Awakening represented Hungary at the Voilá! Europe Festival in London (UK), where it received an OffFest award nomination.

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Creators and performers:
Mátyás Marofka
Balázs Kulcsár

Music: Victor Morató Ribera and Adrián Kovács
Musical director: Adrián Kovács
Costume and set design: Zsuzsa Szőke
Light design, technician: András Váradi
Assistant: Krisztián Kiliti
Technical assistant: Norbert Bakonyi
Production manager: Brigitta Kovács
Co-director: Balázs Kulcsár
Director: Mátyás Marofka

Music recording and sound design: Zoltán Schilling
Musicians: Adrián Kovács, Szabolcs Dörnyei, Stefánia Pénzes, Árpád Székely
Visual, poster: Luca Molnár

The poem “Örvény” (Vortex) by Sándor Weöres translated by Paul Sohar and Peter Sherwood is interpreted by Tricia Hitchcock and Annabelle Cooper.