Seven Questions About Happiness
Schedule
Opening night January 10th 2020, various venues of the Ljubljana Puppet Theatre
Running time 7 hours. Intermissions are a part of the performance, during which food and drinks are available for the guests.
The performance is followed by a discussion with the creators at the last venue.
Due to the nature of the performance and the numerous movements of the audience, wearing of a protective mask is mandatory at all times.
Director and dramaturg Tomi Janežič
Set and puppets designer Branko Hojnik
Costume designer Marina Sremac
Authors of text creators of the performance
Assistant directors and dramaturgs Tjaša Črnigoj, Mirjana Medojević, Daniel Day Škufca
Assistant set designers Nina Rojc, Aleksander Vujović, Liza Privšek
Music selection creators of the performance
Language consultant Mateja Dermelj
Lighting designers Tomi Janežič, Branko Hojnik, Maša Avsec
Sound designers Tomi Janežič, Sven Horvat, Luka Bernetič
Mask designers Marina Sremac, Nina Jordanovski
Stage managers Sven Horvat, Luka Bernetič, Peter Samotorčan
Producer Alja Cerar Mihajlović
Light technicians Maša Avsec, Srečo Brezovar, Gregor Kuhar
Sound and multimedia technician Luka Bernetič
Lights coordinators Niko Štabuc, Danilo Korelec
Stage technicians Darko Nedeljkovič, Alojz Milošič, Iztok Vrhovnik, Luka Moškrič, Slobodan Ilić, Jure Popovič, Sašo Kitić, Stanko Božanić, Kemal Vrabac Kordiš, Klemen Sašek
Props Sašo Kitić
Wardrobe and make-up artists Daša Jordanovski, Nina Jordanovski
Set, puppets, props and costumes production Zoran Srdić, Iztok Bobić, Polona Černe, Zala Kalan, Sandra Birjukov, Marjetka Valjavec, David Klemenčič, Milenko Pavlović, Uroš Mehle, Mateja Šušteršič, Aleksandra Kovačević, Snežana Janjić Horvat, Danica Ćeran, Vesna Sačić, Branko Hojnik, Liza Privšek, Nina Rojc, Zlatko Djogi, Anja Borsan, Jan Raman, Olga Milić
Cast
Lovro Finžgar, Tomi Janežič a. g., Nataša Keser a. g., Sonja Kononenko, Boris Kos, Maja Kunšič, Jure Lajovic, Iztok Lužar, Gašper Malnar, Anja Novak, Matej Recer, Nina Skrbinšek, Daniel Day Škufca a. g., Matija Vastl
The creative process for the performance drew from Maeterlinck’s Blue Bird – a story of the archetypal journey of one’s pursuit of happiness. The creators of the performance have used the story to describe the search for the blue bird and to write their own stories about family, memory, dreams, death, joy, love, future, parting and sense. Seven Questions About Happiness is a long theatre journey, a performance about a performance, a story about a story, and in some way a sequel to the creative process that started – at least for some members of the team – with the performance no title yet. In fact, in recent years, Janežič has staged a number of unusually long performances in various countries, which aim to deconstruct theatre, highlight its miraculous nature, and put forward the community, which is part of the event.Due to the obsession with happiness that is typical of our time, it is worth mentioning that the two children in the story never catch the blue bird – at least none, which could survive daylight. However, this does not mean that the two children do not see and experience a great deal (perhaps all their lives?) and that they remain unaffected by all the things that they encounter on their path. On this journey, their view of the world, in which they return after their dream-like life, changes. In other words: this does not mean that they failed to find happiness. And yet we should not forget that they haven’t set out on the journey to find the blue bird for their own sakes …
The monumental effect of time, space and imagination, empowered by a firm grip of the community, is a fundamental attribute that, following the no title yet project, also leaves a mark on Seven Questions About Happiness, the new seven-hour theatrical journey directed by Tomi Janežič. Finding a blue bird as a synonym for finding happiness is not an activity, but rather an idea—therefore formless, but no less true. This is why the stage time is not linear (if anything, it is our physical experience of it that is linear), but rather cyclical, fragmented along the way like crumbs, scattered and complex, since the utopia of finding happiness does not exist by itself; it only needs to be invented.
Zala Dobovšek, Dnevnik, 13. 01. 2020
Director
Tomi Janežič (b. 1972), stage director and pedagogue, who also works as a psychodrama therapist, is employed as a full professor at the AGRFT (Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television). Many international critics regard his as one of the most interesting European theatre directors of his generation. He is also internationally recognised as an expert in creative acting techniques. He has received more than thirty international awards and recognitions. In addition, he was nominated for the Gold mask award, the highest Russian prize in the field of performing arts, and for the Hedda award – an equally important recognition in Norway, where he won the UT award for the best staging in 2016.
Producer
The Lutkovno gledališče Ljubljana (1948) is the principal Slovenian puppet theatre. In its six venues, it presents twelve new shows for children, young people and adults a year, combining classic puppetry forms with various contemporary performance practices. The theatre also organises two biennial festivals – the International Puppet Theatre Festival Lutke and the National Festival of Performing Arts for Children and Young People Zlata paličica. An important activity of the theatre is also taking care of the rich heritage of Slovenian puppetry, displayed at the Museum of Puppetry at the Ljubljana Castle.
