IN THE GLARE OF LIGHTNING

We step into a landscape. Our map is a sketchbook. We follow the traces of Pepa Beuys. First he flew, then he was shot down, but he recovered, became an artist, and wore a hat. He worked magic and spent his life asking what is art? What is this language that allows us to speak with each other somewhere beyond rational understanding? It resists, and yet it attracts and entices, uncovering the invisible. Just like magic.

Robert Smolík and Veronika Vlková look together at the work and legacy of visual artist, performer, educator, and art theorist Joseph Beuys. His thinking brought a radical shift in the 1970s, when art came to be seen as part of every human life and as a way to change the world. In the glare of lightning blends the setting of a theatre performance and an exhibition with elements of séance, healing ritual, and celebration of art and creativity. It invites anyone bold enough to get muddy into a landscape of objects that hold the seeds of transformation. In a quiet dialogue, Smolík and Vlková search for ways to reconnect with the Earth and its inhabitants. 

Devised by: Robert Smolík, Veronika Vlková
Performer: Veronika Vlková
Dramaturgy: Anna Prstková
Partners: Balbineum
Special thanks to: Radka Mizerová, Hana Kubešová, Hanka Malikovičová