Second Skin — a performance centered on the body and movement, a collective creation conceived and directed by Ferenc Sinkó—can be seen at the National Dance Center in Bucharest on June 14 at 7:30 p.m.
In Second Skin, a group of performers explores the imprints that work, exposure, and daily life leave on their own bodies. The tensions between the intimate body, the social body, and the professional body emerge through accumulations of gestures, impulses, and self-reflections. The body’s memory is revisited and reconstructed in real time.
Passing through an endless series of situations that demand its presence, the body reacts as best it can: it adjusts, freezes, withdraws, repeats familiar patterns. It resists. A thin, identity-defining, transparent membrane keeps it alive and in tension. Under the pressure to perform, states oscillate between pleasure and insecurity, vulnerability and control. The body protests and learns to adapt with strength and determination. It wants to express itself sincerely and, at the same time, to be accepted. Surrendering to the visceral, it sometimes discovers a fragile balance and unexpected forms of freedom.
“I don’t know in which category to place the show; it’s certainly not a dance performance, and perhaps not even theater. I would rather call it a hybrid performance that combines atmospheres, images, and performers who question their bodies and their presence on stage, with situations that aren’t very concrete and without a well-defined story. I don’t have my own aesthetic; I always leave that up to others, and I like to adapt to the suggestions of the people I work with. Instead, I have my own approach to the process I use in creating my shows. I try to create an environment conducive to a collaborative process. I work a lot with group exercises; I try to explore the theme indirectly through many discussions and exercises that don’t necessarily seem to have anything to do with building the show.” (Ferenc Sinkó, the show’s director)
“As with any performance, I hope the audience comes with an open mind and without too many expectations. In Second Skin, the focus isn’t on the text, but on a different kind of language—one they’ll easily recognize and decode. Anyone can relate to the theme of the body through the lens of their own experiences. In fact, it seems there is a kind of ‘empathy’ that arises when we observe a body in motion, which activates the motor system and causes what we see to be mirrored and reproduced internally.” (Oana Hodade, who is responsible for the play’s dramaturgy and soundscape)
The performance premiered in Cluj-Napoca on June 7 and is part of the project Instances of Labor – Contemporary Body, which aims to explore the concept of labor and its role in society, starting from the individual’s relationship with social and professional constructs, as well as with their own body and how it is affected.
A cultural project co-funded by the Administration of the National Cultural Fund.
The project does not necessarily represent the position of the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. The AFCN is not responsible for the content of the project or for how the project’s results may be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the funding recipient.
Second Skin
– collaborative creation –
Concept and Direction: Ferenc Sinkó
Dramaturgy and Sound Design: Oana Hodade
Set Design: Mihai Păcurar
Assistant Director: Mihai Gligan
Sound and Lighting: Cătălin Filip and Alex Maftei
Cast: Ana Maria Marin, Calița Nantu, Alexandra Harapu, Cătălin Filip, Tavi Voina
Poster Illustration and Animation: MAT
Duration: 90 min
Age: All Ages
Subject: body body body
Genre: meta-leak
Atmosphere: liminal
Tickets are available on eventbook.ro.
For more information about the Reactor program, please visit www.reactor-cluj.com, www.facebook.com/ReactorCluj, or www.instagram.com/reactor.cluj.
