Zvizdal, the documentary theatre portrait of Pétro and Nadia filmed by Berlin between 2011 and 2016, is not only in Paris, Ghent and Athens. This moving story can also be seen in the Netherlands until 11 November 2016.
Close to the site where an atomic experiment failed in 1986, Berlin and Zvizdal tell a moving story about an old farming couple. They were the only ones left in the 'forbidden zone', where radioactive contamination is still so high every day that you are not allowed to live there. With the failure of the nuclear test, the lives of the younger inhabitants of the area take a drastic turn. They leave their homes never to return again. Except for Pétro and Nadia, they stay at home on their farm in Zvizdal where they were born and raised. Along with the horse, cow, dog and some chickens.
Documentary theatre performance
The show is a beautiful cinematic portrait of two old people surviving in a ghost village. In this totally isolated world without running water, electricity, telephone or mail, Nadia and Pétro are interviewed. Their lives and choices are captured on camera over four years against the backdrop of different seasons.
Unprecedentedly intense confrontation with basis of what is life and love
During Theatre Festival Boulevard, the Cultural Press Agency wrote favourably about this performance: "I experienced by far one of the most impressive theatre experiences of my life on Friday, 5 August 2016. I was a guest at 'Zvizdal - Chernobyl so far, so close' by the Flemish company Berlin, in co-production with Het Zuidelijk Toneel. I saw this 'documentary installation' in an empty factory hall in Den Bosch, where the work is a wonderful resting point in the otherwise bustling hustle and bustle of Festival Boulevard. The film, combined with live recordings of small models under the film screen, confronts you with the basics of what life and love is with unprecedented intensity."
Read the entire review and interview here
Magnificent theatre installation
In the room, you feel the loneliness, stubbornness, hope and love of Pétro and Nadia. This is partly because you are close to their skin. The tanned faces and silence tell a lot. The arrangement of the film screen (under which there are three models) also adds to the (sometimes uneasy) intimate atmosphere. The documentary footage is combined and interspersed with live footage of the stills of the maquettes.
To be seen in the Netherlands 2016
[Tweet "Podium Hoge Woerd hosts unique theatre documentary Zvizdal on 28 and 29 October"]Utrecht, Podium Hoge Woerd - 28 and 29 October (https://www.podiumhogewoerd.nl/agenda/zvizdal/ )
[Tweet "In Roosendaal, Zvizdal, a world-renowned theatre documentary to be experienced on 3 November"]
Roosendaal, De Kring Roosendaal - 3 November
[Tweet "Make sure you don't miss Zvizdal, the unique theatre documentary in Tilburg (9 Nov)"]
Tilburg, De NWE Vorst - 9 November
[Tweet "Experience the unique theatre documentary Zvizdal in Drachten (11 Nov)"]
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