Elisabeth Bakambamba Tambwe
Speech of Love: Absence
You are in love, and the person you love is absent. While you wait, your thoughts revolve around him*her. And there is this fear of being left. Human desire seems to be ineluctably intertwined with a longing for the absent. French philosopher Roland Barthes dedicated his book “A Lover’s Discourse: Fragments” (1977) to this phenomenon, in a collection of text fragments on the topic of “love”, based on self-observation.
Vienna-based choreographer and visual artist Elisabeth Bakambamba Tambwe was inspired by Roland Barthes. She instates the figure of the absentee as the starting point for a performative scrutiny of desire. Five performers put themselves in the position of the waiting. In a space of raw emotion, they fight with passion and despair. Will they be able to overcome their powerlessness? We are going to witness an alliance of dancing bodies uniting against the power of emotions.
Artistic concept and artistic direction: Elisabeth Bakambamba Tambwe. Artistic assistance and performance: Luca Bonamore, Lau Lukkarila, Evandro Pedroni, David Ketterer, Annick Choco. Dramaturgical support: Katinka Deecke. Production: Indra Jäger. Stage and costumes: Rimma Ariel Elbert. Music and composition: Ursula Winterauer. Lighting design: Martin Schwab. Video: Eduardo Trivinio Cely. Our special thanks go out to Monika Gintersdorfer.
Production: Dig Up Productions. Coproduction: WUK Performing Arts Wien, FFT Düsseldorf, Château Rouge. Supported by: MA 7 Stadt Wien Kultur. Supported as part of the Alliance of International Production Houses by the Federal Commissioner for Culture and the Media.