READING THE ROOM
Concept, performance: Imre Vass
Lights: Júlia Mohácsi
Music: Mike Nylons
Photo: Barnabás Neogrády-Kiss
Video: András Szombathy
Production Partner: Katlan Csoport
Support: NDA Slovenia, Divert, Life Long Burning, art quarter Budapest, Workshop Foundation, ITM, National Cultural Fund Hungary.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
"The 'room' is autonomous and erratic. Only the ones who are willing to step across the threshold and lean closer towards it will hear its message."
Reading the Room is an improvisational and performative practice that invites the audience to witness a journey that investigates precarious routines of increasing the sensitivity of attention. It tries to braid multiple strands of information and possibilities, and weave them into one singularity.
The performer is a host who is familiar with spending time in the 'room'. At first glance the 'room' looks empty, normal, nothing spectacular. The guide has the knowledge and skill to draw attention to the specificities of the space, so that we can start to see it as the 'room'. The 'room' is a concrete yet abstract place, where your perspective is shifted from the mundane to the magical and metaphysical. Where new narratives and insights can emerge from 'stalking' the room while with the help of the performer, the spectators can sink into their own bodies and selves.
The term 'reading the room' refers to an ability to pick up subtle, non-verbal cues from a group of people, understanding the mood and the atmosphere of a social situation. In addition to this, the performance explores how locality – the physical parameters, the genius loci and the context of the place where it takes place – informs the performance.
