OCHLOS II

At the threshold between human and animal—goat legs, human torso—two hybrid creatures from ancient mythology return after twenty-five centuries to summon Demos and reopen the Athenian Assembly. They could not have chosen a better moment. As more and more people begin to doubt democracy and search for alternatives, the old rituals are performed once again.

Together with the audience, they bring back a world of temples, olive trees, goat sacrifices, clumsy dances, and public speeches. They don't shy away from even the biggest clichés you can imagine.

What begins as a pseudo-historical reenactment of an ancient assembly slowly transforms into something else. One careless speech. One collective decision. One exile. Suddenly, the city must come face to face with those it has banished beyond its walls.

Ochlos is a participatory theatrical fable in which mythology, comedy, and contemporary politics gradually fold into one another. By restaging a single day of the Athenian Assembly, the performance explores how every act of belonging simultaneously produces a new outside. If democracy promises inclusion, what happens when it begins to protect itself through exclusion?

Concept, scenography, directing: Jan Mocek
Created with, performed by: Halka Třešňíková Arseniy Mikhaylov
Music: Matouš Hekela
Lighting, sound: Ondřej Růžička
Production: Táňa Švehlová, SixHouses z.s.
Artistic advice: Sodja Lotker, Tinka Avramova
Photos: Adéla Vosičková

Jan Mocek
Jan Mocek is a theatre maker based in Prague. In his work he mixes elements of pop culture, politics, and personal experience to speak about the times we are living in. In other words, he sees the gold where everyone else smells shit. His main concern in theatre work is to open up difficult themes with all their ambiguities, while offering pure distilled doses of beauty. Mocek’s work has been presented at national and international festivals and venues, among them Zürcher Theater Spektakel, Komuna Warszawa, Toplocentrala, Fast Forward Dresden, Rehearsal for Truth NYC, Submerge Digital Arts festival Bristol, and 4+4 Days in Motion Prague. Jan Mocek is a member of IN-SITU - European Platform for Artistic Creation in Public Space.SixHouses is a production platform directed by Tana Svehlova, it provides complex production support for Jan Mocek´s projects.
www.janmocek.org