Press release
16 June 2015
All the world of theatre is coming to Prague!
The 2015 Prague Quadrennial is about to start
1000 artists, 78 countries, 11 days, 600 live events, palaces,
galleries, public squares, courtyards in the centre of Prague
It’s time for the 13th Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, the most
important international theatre festival in the world, with a tradition dating back to
1967. The opening ceremony for PQ’15 will take place on Old Town Square at 6pm on
Wednesday 17 June. Over the subsequent 11 days, tens of thousands of visitors will
be able to see works by artists from a record 78 countries. One of the biggest changes
this year involves the venues where the festival takes place – for the first time in the
festival’s history, the expositions are moving to the historic city centre, occupying a
triangular area formed by Old Town Square, the National Theatre, and Charles Bridge.
All the exhibited works will be on display inside important buildings and monuments
and in the public space. The highlight of the PQ’15 programme is the Section of
Countries and Regions, which offers visitors an overwhelming labyrinth of
scenographic exhibitions from 68 countries, plus special live events. In many cases,
audiences become participants in interactive expositions, influencing the look of
dozens of exhibitions inspired by this year’s theme, SharedSpace: Music Weather
Politics. As a result, at this year’s Quadrennial you can encounter clouds, storms or
wind, hear and see various forms of music and reflect upon artistic responses to
contemporary political events. Through these experiential exhibits, visitors can
explore the world of contemporary theatre.
PQ’15 opening ceremony
The opening ceremony for the 13th Prague Quadrennial will take place on Wednesday, 17 June at
6pm on Old Town Square. Performers include the Poľana folk ensemble from Jarabina under the
direction of Viliam Dočolomanský, members of the Farm in the Cave theatre ensemble, and the Berg
Orchestra with conductor Peter Vrábel.
Venues: PQ’15 will take over historical buildings and public space in downtown
Prague
Unlike previous editions, PQ’15 is the first time the exhibition moves to Prague’s historical city centre.
The exhibition venues include an abandoned building, a baroque palace, a gothic church, a gallery
and more. One major innovation is the inclusion of moving exhibits in the public space, in particular the
live Tribes exhibition, which features masked groups from around the world wandering through town.
These Tribes will appear on the streets, in the metro, in supermarkets, and at theatres and museums.
As part of their national expositions, many countries will also present accompanying installations in
public spaces. For instances, the Australian team has created original boats to ply to waters of the
Vltava River, the Swiss have installed a large walkway along nearly all of Wenceslas Square, and
there will be a special music-and-art performance at the outdoor swimming pool in Podolí.
Main PQ’15 exhibition: Section of Countries and Regions
The main attractions at PQ’15 are the expositions by the participating countries and regions, which will
present their unique views of the scenographic discipline, sometimes in combination with live events.
The Section of Countries and Regions takes place at the Colloredo-Mansfelsd Palace, the ClamGallas Palace, Prague Crossroads, the Kafka’s House, the New Stage of the National Theatre and
piazzetta, and in public spaces in downtown Prague.
TOP 5 exhibitions:
Czech Republic: SWEET SWEET SWEET (National Theatre: New Stage and piazzetta)
and GOLEM Cube video installation (Vila Štvanice)
The Czech Republic is represented by two art projects at the Prague Quadrennial. Audiences
will find the Czech exposition at the National Theatre’s piazzetta and New Stage, which for 11
days will host scenographer Jana Preková’s project “SWEET SWEET SWEET – Heavenly
Festival”. And don’t miss the unique video installation “GOLEM Cube”, presented at Vila
Štvanice as part of the Performing Space project and inspired by Ivo Kristián Kubák
successful theatre performance.
Poland: Postapokalypsa (Topič Salon)
The Polish national exposition, which involves the participation of leading scenographer Jerzy
Gurawski, invites visitors to explore the mysteries of sonification and gives them the chance to
“touch sound” by listening to it through their own bones. Viewers will hear a continuous flow of
weather reports from various places, as well as news reports about various real or possible
disasters (Chernobyl, Los Alamos, Fukushima). The installation’s changing audiosphere
actively responds to human presence.
Hungary: A Donor for Prometheus (St. Anne’s Church / Prague Crossroads)
The Hungarian national exposition presents an interpretation of the ancient myth of the
punishment of Prometheus in the form of an epic theatre installation. Everyone surely knows
the ancient legend of Prometheus, sentenced to a 10,000-year punishment during which an
eagle eats a part of his liver every day, only to have it grow back by the next day. But when
the punishment neared its end, his liver no longer grew back. In order for Prometheus’ liver not
to fail, the installation will require volunteer liver donors.
Switzerland: Wenceslas Line (Wenceslas Square)
A footbridge stretching from the top to the bottom of the busiest place in all of Prague –
Wenceslas Square. Pedestrians will get a bird’s-eye view of a place that has been the site of
many historical events.
Finland: The Sound of Music (In a Box) (Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace / Ovocný trh)
The Finnish national exposition explores the ability of sound and music to influence space,
time and the emotional character of a place/theatre stage, while at the same time observing
the influence of climatic conditions on sound. The Finnish team has converted a shipping
container into a concert hall where the musical instruments are exposed to extreme changes
in weather: rain is followed by frost, and heat by floods or even a wind storm. Influenced by the
weather, the instruments’ tones will change, forcing the musicians to adapt their playing
accordingly. The test composition that will be performed inside the sound box is Vivaldi’s
famous The Four Seasons.
Experimental exhibitions: Tribes, Makers, Objects
Another special section at PQ’15 are the accompanying exhibitions Objects, Makers and Tribes, which
can be seen at various galleries and in public spaces. For the entire duration of the Prague
Quadrennial, the Náprstek Museum will be the home base for various Tribes – masked beings that, on
their wanderings through the streets, in the metro and in supermarkets, will attempt to blend in with
everyday life. Over the course of 11 days, always from 10am to 7pm, 90 groups of masked students
and professional will wander downtown Prague trying to confront the banality of urban space. The
Makers exhibition consists of two live events a day for the duration of the Prague Quadrennial 2015,
held all day long at the Gallery at the Bethlehem Chapel. In Makers, artists from all over the world will
prepare and present gourmet performances based on various theatre performances. And the Objects
exhibition at the Nová Síň gallery invited audiences to hear the amazing stories of interesting theatre
props or objects associated with the theatre.
International star lectures at PQ’15!
PQ’15 also invites visitors to attend lectures by famous theatre artists. Canadian theatre guru Robert
Lepage is renowned primarily for his multimedia productions. Through his production company Ex
Machina, he has directed performances at leading opera houses such as the Metropolitan Opera in
New York. Many people consider him the most talented theatre artist today. Another star on the
program is a co-founder of Berlin’s Gob Squad Sean Patten, whose lecture will focus on the use of
multimedia in theatre. Theatre professionals will also have an opportunity to meet with American
director Julie Taymor, whose best known film, Frida, received six Oscar nominations and won in two
categories. Her most famous theatre production is the Broadway musical adaptation of The Lion King,
for which she won Tony Awards for directing and for costume design. Various workshops will provide
an opportunity to work closely with artists such as Philippe Quesne (France), the founder of the
Vivarium Studio, who presented his minimalist The Serge Effect at last year’s International Theatre
Festival in Pilsen. Also appearing are scenographer Dominic Huber (Switzerland), who collaborated
with pioneers of “documentary theatre” Rimini Protokoll, and theatre director Kirsten Dehlholm
(Denmark), the artistic director and founder of the Hotel Pro Forma ensemble.
The Golden Triga for the best exposition
The 13th edition of the Prague Quadrennial will award the prestigious Golden Triga to the best
exposition, and will also present Gold Medals in several theatre discipline. Special awards will be
presented for an innovative approach to scenography and for promoting dialogue, and there will also
be a Children’s Audience Award. The professional jury includes renowned theatre artists such as
director and scenographer Kamila Polívková, Russian director and scenographer (and winner of the
Golden Triga at PQ 2007) Dmitri Krymov, and Antônio Araújo, artist director of the Teatro da Vertigem
and winner of a Gold Medal for Best Realization of a Production at PQ’11.
Basic admission to PQ’15 is CZK 300. Admission is free for senior citizens older than 65 and
children aged 15 and under. Visitors can also take advantage of special discounts offered in
collaboration with various theatres, galleries, museums, festival and cinemas, and Prague’s
public transport company. Present a transit ticket or an Opencard transit pass, and you will
receive half off on admission. In the same way, tickets from some theatres ensure half-price
admission. On Friday, 19 June admission to PQ’15 is free for all as part of the “A Day with ČT
ART” event.
Opening hours for PQ’15 venues: 18 – 28 June, 10am – 7pm; 19 June, 10am – 11pm
More information on the individual programme sections can be found in the programme
brochure and in the other attached press materials.
All information can be found at www.pq.cz.
Print-quality photographs can be downloaded after logging in at: http://www.pq.cz/press/protected
login: PQ
password: PQ2015
Journalist can apply for the press accreditation, which is available to those reporting on the PQ
for all types of media (print, online, TV, radio, web-TV, photography).
Press accreditation provides journalists with the free entrance to all PQ´s exhibitions for 11
days, possibility to register for the lectures and theatre performances, access to the press
center and more!
Register for the press accreditation HERE.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The Prague Quadrennial is organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic and realized by the Arts and Theatre
Institute.
With the support of the Culture Programme of the European Union.
The 2015 Prague Quadrennial is part of the three-year international project SharedSpace: Music Weather Politics.
www.pq.cz
www.facebook.com/praguequadrennial
www.sharedspace.cz
PR and press service:
Eva Riebová
PR Manager
Prague Quadrennial
of Performance Design and Space
Celetná 17, 110 00 Prague 1, Czech Republic
Phone: +420 224 809 102
Mobile: +420 602 494 404
E-mail: eva.riebova@pq.cz
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