According to the encyclopedia, a biotope is a living and non-living environment, influenced and altered by the living component of nature - biota. It can be understood as the common environment of certain components, i.e. the set of all the influences that make up the environment of all the organisms living there. Imagine Biotop as a unique performative work created in a specific location, enriched by the experiences and personalities of invited local artists, where the creators are inspired by the space, history, cultural and geopolitical context. We can say that we see the litmus paper of that particular place and society. WORKSHOPS, DIRECTION, MUSIC: Pauline Roelants and Maarten van der Put. PERFORMERS: international Florencia Martina, Eulalia Bergada Serra, Conor Doherty, Hanne Schillemans, Jeff Stevens, Reinaldo Ribeiro and 4 local performers selected on the basis of the open call and the following workshop. DRAMATURGICAL COOPERATION Matouš Danzer CREATIVE PRODUCER: Ewa Zembok and production platform Rekultur
When: open rehearsals 30 and 31 August, opening night 1 September 2024. Where: Synagogue on Palmovka, Prague 8. Tickets: pay as you can 150Kč, 190Kč, 250Kč available through GoOut.
4 selected artists from the Czech Republic of different ages and backgrounds and 5 international artists from the United Cowboys, led by choreographer and performer Pauline Roelants and visual artist Maarten van der Put, will present a unique version of the international production Biotop at the Synagogue on Palmovka Street.
Biotop is a live concept created by United Cowboys in which the group explores the mentality of the dancer/performer and the audience at the same time. What does the performer focus on when they have neither clearly defined playing boundaries nor a fixed audience; where does the spectator look and for how long when they have neither a fixed place nor a defined time?
The project redefines space. The audience can walk around, observe and absorb this world from all angles. The viewer can stop, move on, get out and come back again. The performers guide the audience, offering the audience a certain freedom within a fixed set of rules and dramaturgy. There is no fixed time limit, the duration is based on the specific realization and location. Each individual programme normally lasts between 4 and 5 hours. But the concept itself is infinite: over time it becomes a living organism, a kind of expanding memory that creates a platform for artistic exchange and exploration across countries and cultures. Each Biotope chooses its own direction, place and form.
The project is realized in cooperation with Krajinou přílivu z.s. and has been supported by the European Union (National Restoration Plan), the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, the State Fund for Culture of the Czech Republic.
