A piece by Josef Nadj based on the works of Oskar Vojnić

 

Choregraphy

Josef Nadj

 

Performers

Istvan Bicskei, Denes Dobrei, Peter Gemza, Franck Micheletti, Josef Nadj, Jozsef Sarvari, Gyork Szakonyi

 

Music

Stevan Kovac Tickmayer

 

Performed by

Stevan Kovac Tickmayer – piano

Chris Cutler – percussions

 

Scenography

Goury

 

Lights

Rémi Nicolas

assisted by Raymond Blot

 

 

Set construction

Le Vif, Fred Jack & Philippe Richard

 

Production

Théâtre JEL

 

Coproduction

Centre de production chorégraphique d’Orleans, Théâtre National de Bretagne – Rennes, Théâtre de la Ville – Paris, La Coursive Scène Nationale – La Rochelle, Carré Saint-Vincent – Scène National d’Orléans

 

Thanks to

Carré Saint-Vincent – Scène Nationale d’Orléans, Théâtre National de Bretagne

 

Creation

Scène nationale d’Orléans – november 1994

This performance pays homage to travel-writer Oskar Vojnić. Born in 1864 in Hungary,  Vojnić died in 1914 in Port-Saïd in Egypt after having spent the last twenty years of his life roaming the globe (Middle-East, Africa, Asia) , spurred by his longing for travel.

 

Vojnić’s travel bug started with a passion for volcanic landscapes and the diverse manifestations of the earth’s forces. Later on, with a character drawn to adventure, he discovered big cat hunting parties in Africa and started studying the foreign languages he encountered on his travels.

In parallel to his observations on the natural world and big cats, he started questioning himself on the origin of the deeply buried forces which compel men to conquer faraway places, and on the root of Man’s primordial instincts.

As his explorations progressed, he abandoned his research on natural phenomena and animals to focus on a question which was already that of Plato: “What’s in there then, deep down inside myself ?” In the West, Europe was descending slowly into self-destruction and the first signs of a coming war were being witnessed.  Vojnić preferred to remain abroad, and put an end to his journey. On the day of his fiftieth birthday, he committed suicide.

 

His observations and his destiny have become the basis of an interrogation, which remains ours today: how can we preserve the path that man laboriously creates for himself, when history’s path blurs, founders? How can man go forward while constantly achieving a blend between what he is, what he possesses, and the unknown, the foreign? How can that moment be found again, deep inside all men, when Man’s primordial instinct rubbed shoulders with animals’ original instincts?

 

Josef Nadj – october 1994

History :

 

7-8 décembre 2000

Scène nationale d’Orléans

Orléans (FR)

 

26-27 avril 1996

Springdance Festival Stadschouwbourg

Utrecht (NL)

 

13-14 avril 1996

Altenburg Gerta Theater

Gera (DE)

 

23 janvier 1996

Théâtre Onyx

Nantes (FR)

 

15 décembre 1995

Maison des Congrès et de la Culture

Clermont-Ferrand (FR)

 

7 novembre 1995

Centre Culturel la Rive Gauche

Saint-Étienne-de-Rouvray (FR)

 

9 septembre 1995

Oriente-Occident

Rovereto (IT)

 

5 juin 1995

Institut Français

Bratislava (SK)

 

28 mai 1995

Centre Culturel Français

Ljubjlana (SI)

 

23 mai 1995

Centre Culturel Français

Nova Gorica (SI)

 

20 mai 1995

Institut Français

Budapest (HUN)

 

13 mai 1995

La Filature

Mulhouse (FR)

 

5 mai 1995

La Ferme du Buisson

Noisiel (FR)

 

31 mars 1995

Théâtre Toursky

Marseille (FR)

 

21-22 mars 1995

Théâtre Garonne

Toulouse (FR)

 

10 mars 1995

Espace Olivier Carol, Scène nationale de Foix

Foix (FR)

 

7 mars 1995

La Passerelle

Saint-Brieuc (FR)

 

15 février 1995

La Coursive Scène nationale de La Rochelle

La Rochelle (FR)

 

20 janvier 1995

TNDI

Ollioules (FR)

 

12-14 janvier 1995

Théâtre de Singel

Anvers (BE)

 

14-22 décembre 1994

Théâtre de la Ville

Paris (FR)

 

novembre  1994

Scène nationale d’Orléans

Orléans (FR)