Scenography of Voices

performance
2024

concept: Daniel Kotowski
costumes: Paweł Włodarski
dramaturgical consultation: Ala Kobielarz
choreography and voice training: Alicja Czyczel
performed by: Alicja Czyczel, Daniel Dobosz, Daniel Kotowski, Wiktoria Kruszczyńska
research consultation: Anna Goc 
production: Ewa Grzebyk
lighting design: Krzysiek Rykaczewski
stage management: Aleksandra Śliwińska
venue: STUDIO theatregallery

In the Indonesian village of Bengkala on the island of Bali, almost all residents – hearing and Deaf alike – are able to use the local sign language, Kata Kolok. There, the familiar divisions between disabled and non-disabled people are suspended. What does it feel like to enter a community in which the norm has been so radically displaced?
The community of Bengkala serves as a point of departure for performance artist Daniel Kotowski in his work for STUDIO, Scenography of Voices. Kotowski’s action is based on an inversion of the discourse of power usually held by those regarded as able-bodied. As a Deaf person, Daniel is often automatically perceived as mute. In this performance, he becomes the one who speaks – a “loudspeaker” whose sounds are interpreted by actors. The central question of the project is: to what extent is a person able to produce their subjectivity outside the discourse of power that acts upon the body? Perhaps, in order to perceive certain limits more clearly, it is necessary to reverse the hierarchy and expose its absurdity.

photo credit: Sisi Cecylia