we have when we leave the theatre? “I think that also changes as I age. I‘ve recently been increasing- ly attempting to address the big is- sues of human existence. What the point of everything is, how we deal with the loss of beauty, with the fact that gravity takes its toll on everything, the idea of death, how we address the current longing for something spiritual, how we can make friends with the beast with- in us and how we can escape it... I don‘t claim to be a great think- er. I play with these ideas, as a hu- man and an artist. I might seem like a person who has strong atti- tudes, but I still don‘t trust them
enough to convert them into some- thing that I hope has the potential to last longer than my trivial life.” How do you recall the Olympic Games, the world‘s greatest show? Did you have the freedom to do what you wanted? “Yes, I had freedom. I didn‘t have the freedom to present nudes, because we were the hosts, so we had to try to ensure that everyone felt comfortable. I had freedom, but I knew that I shouldn’t be ar- rogant with that kind of freedom, because this was a mission, prod- uct advertising, and that product was Greek culture. That was a cele- bration, not my personal artwork, rather a national promotion, which is what the Olympic Games are. I subtly included many details, at a subconscious level. I‘m very proud of that today, and infinitely grate- ful to life for giving me that op- portunity.” It is interesting that your avant-garde works are per- formed on classical stag- es. How have you managed to reach such diverse audi- ences? “I‘ll have to ask you that, as I have no idea. I‘m grateful, I don‘t take that for granted, I don‘t know how it happened. I experienced mass acceptance in Greece, especially after the Olympics. It was also irritating, because people who didn‘t like what I was creating nonetheless came to watch my pieces... I became some- one whose works are unmissable. I was very privileged in that sense, but I wasn‘t known where I most wanted to be – at international art festivals. And then all of a sudden that also happened, for which I‘m of course indebted to Claire Verlet [artistic director of Paris‘s Théâtre de la Ville].” You‘ve already been a guest of the Belgrade Dance Fes- tival. What are your im- pressions of Belgrade; how do you remember our city? “Oh, I think it‘s very sexy. I re- ally liked the brutalism of the build- ing where we performed, the Sava
Centre. I think there‘s something very intense about situating my very unusual atmosphere in such a bril- liant environment. I actually have the fondest memories of Belgrade and your Dance Festival. I‘m really hopeful of a new encounter.” What can we expect this year; what kind of show are you bringing for us and will you shock us? “I think this is a much bright- er, lighter piece, compared to what you‘ve seen already, and I also think that something sweet exists in it - of course alongside the melancholy that is my nature... That‘s all I can say. When you watch the trailer you‘ll get a small impression of what follows, because pictures and sounds are al- ways better than words. Once we‘ve revealed Transverse Orientation, we can talk about what people think. It is precious to me when people reveal something that I didn‘t know about my own work, which is why it‘s al- ways better not to mention them, not to interpret the show in advance. I‘m very curious, because we don‘t know what kind of impression the piece will leave. We‘ve been work- ing on it for so long and have nev- er had a hundred or a hundred and fifty people watching it; we‘ve nev- er felt their energy, joy and enthu- siasm, or their repulsion, coughs, si- lence... For now this is a book that no one has opened and read.” To conclude, what would you single out as a treasure that must be seen, felt and experienced in your home- town... And that isn‘t part of the usual tourist offer? “This is a very difficult question. I think everything‘s a tourist attrac- tion already. I don‘t know how to an- swer this question, but I can say that it was perhaps only in Los Angeles that I saw a similar light to the one that Athens possesses. I think this is an unavoidable experience, but that it‘s also my city‘s most valua- ble and therapeutic element. I can‘t suggest anything I know that isn‘t al- ready a well-known museum, a beau- tiful stroll, a good bite or a place for swimming.”
Možda sam samo u Los Anđelesu video sličnu svetlost koju ima Atina. Mislim da je ta svetlost najvredniji i terapeutski element koji moj grad poseduje Perhaps it was only in Los Angeles that I saw a similar light to the one that Athens possesses. I think that light is also my city's most valuable and therapeutic element
Dance » Igra | 29
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