„The Spectrum” is a title of the second project of the Performance Environment cycle, realized in the New Theater in Krakow. Undertaken actions aim to deepen the material and symbolic characteristics of the space and to bring out new methods of how they can be used as the tools of communication with the audience. „The Spectrum” project will be build on a space of the theater stage, which will become the subject of the action and installation.
Performance Environment seeks the harmony between the action, space and audience, whose mutual relationships should naturally flow from the human need of experimentation and expression, and not only be dictated by the cultural conventions of behavior.
The action realized within the “Nowy Kraków” scholarship, held by the New Theater in Krakow.
“The Spectrum” was second in the series of three performative environments, realized in the New Theater. It took place on the 20th of February 2016 r.

 

Documentation: Alina Senik, Weronika Sirasz.

 

Translated interview (video above):

My name is Krzysztof Kaczmar and currently I’m working on the concept of the Performative environment. The place that we are currenttly sitting in is one of its examples. P. E. is a sort of the bridge between performance and installation.
Performance art is a way of expressing yourself through what is the closest to you – by using the medium of your body. The subject of this Performative Environment – „The Spectrum”, revolves arround the issue of „acting”, or rather „play”.
Currently, we are sitting in some sort of cafe bar. It doesn’t function as one, but it gives such an impression because of the situations that will take place in here. It is interesting for me how people behave in public spaces, how they interact with each other, what kind of masks they put on. Today, this cafe bar will be their opportunity to wear a real mask – a piece of fabric behind which they will be able to hide, thereby it will take their necessity of using their own masks. Nonetheless, participants will use scripts of four different theater plays (staged in the New Theater in Krakow) on the tables, and short instructions and commands on: „how to get to know people on the streets” hanging above from the ceiling.
Following Oscar Wilde’s thought: „Give a man a mask and he’ll tell you the truth”, I think that the person that feels comfortable, hiding behind somebody else, or behind the image of himself, can become much more outspoken.
When the scene in cafe bar will reach to its end, and so the spectacle will be played out, I will invite all the audience to the stage. There I will give them flowers, congratulate them, thank them for taking these roles so serious and adapt in them so well. I will create a similar atmosphere to what I’ve participated before – a very pleasant pat on the back and lots of words as a reward for beautiful role play. One by one I will shake hands of all of my actors, and imprint them with talc on the curtain on stage. Afterwards it will be taken outside of the theater and spanked on the beater. In my opinion it is important to realize, that if we will imprint ourselves as a fictional self-creations, than we will be remembered as such a fiction, or forgotten.
I want to go along with the situations, so that unexpected improvisations and interactions will determine their direction, and not necessarily me. I have a base of the action, and I know the general order of the scenes, but this is just an order. The action itself has foundations that generate values, of which I am not the main party today.
Next Performative Environment will take place on the 29th of April in the New Theater at 19h.

Video projection displayed on the audience seats, which were covered with black foil.