Catalonia’s presence at PQ23, headed by the Institut del teatre and co-organised with the Institut Ramon Llull includes two installations: one for the Exhibition of Countries and Regions and another for the Student Exhibition, two of the most important and prestigious sections in the competition. What’s more, Catalonia will also present a model in another section, Fragments II.

The installations were all born from the concept of ‘Strangeness’, the theme established by the organisers of the Prague Quadrennial. Using this requirement as a starting point, as explained by the curators of the PQ23-Catalonia and professors Marta Rafa and Pau Masaló from the Escola Superior d’Art Dramàtic (ESAD), the Catalan entries have focused on the role of stage costumes, understanding the connection between the body and the costume as a generator of the story and an epicentre of the action.

The passing of time through textile remains and clothing, an entry from the team of professional scenographers

In the Countries and Regions exposition, Catalonia is participating with Crop, an installation created by scenographers and costume designers Albert Pascual and Carlota Ricart and stage director and dramatist Raquel Cors, all three graduates of the Institut del Teatre.

The three creators have proposed an installation situated in a future beyond the year 2053 based on abandoned pieces of clothing and costumes that remain from the lives and stories that have passed through the spaces of the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya (TNC) between 1996, the year of its foundation, and 2053, the year when, for a reason open to speculation, the life of this place underwent an interruption or a strong transformation of its existence.

The interactive installation contains piles of clothing, textiles, fabrics, and other pieces of costumes and clothes in varying states of decomposition, covered in fungus, moss, weeds, and bacteria. Visitors will be able to use headphones, pick up a magnifying glass, and scan numerous QR codes attached to the different pieces of clothing which will lead to an audio guide, submerging them in a series of realities, contradictions, and experiences linked to the passing of time at the TNC.

The entry is focused on the TNC as a symbol and representation of a culture, society, and country and uses contemporary archaeology as a starting point because of its ability to connect past, present, and future and to look at our era from another perspective.

The artist Sara de Ubieta, who has collaborated in the treatment of the textiles, will give two talks/workshops in which she will explain the processes used in order to treat the textiles.

Student Entry: The ancestral ritual of the Sybil

The Chant of the Sybil is the title of the entry from Quim Palmada, Pol Roig, and Mireia Sintes, students at the Escola Superior d'Art Dramàtic (ESAD) in the Institut del Teatre, who will compete in the Student Exhibition.

The installation is a free interpretation of the liturgical chant of the Sybil that prophesises the end of the world every Winter Solstice. The Sybil is a figure from ancient Greek mythology that evolved with the arrival of Christianity and has survived until today.

The structure, which can be entered by visitors, consists of a fixed scaffold and a mobile element suspended above in the form of a bell, representing the Sybil’s cloak.

Four times a day (at 11:00, 13:00, 15:00, and 17:00) there will be a ritual at the installation where the bell will descend; visitors who so wish can actively participate in this ritual and try to imagine the destiny of humanity.

Montse Amenós, in Fragments II

Catalonia will also be present in Fragments II, a section of the Prague Quadrennial dedicated to scenographic design, where models, miniatures, and a large range of 3-D, small-scale representations of shows or stage projects will be exhibited.

In total, the works of 23 artists from 16 different countries will be on display, including the model that scenographer Montse Amenós created for Patetisme il·lustrat, Carles Santos’ last show. As part of the PQ23, Montse Amenós will host a conference about this stage project. This is the first time that Catalonia has participated in this section.

In the presentation of the event, the director of the Institut del Teatre, Sílvia Ferrando, has described attending the Quadrennial as an experience and an opportunity for younger generations, as it is a place where they can be in the presence of professionals from all over the world.

On his part, Pere Almeda, director of the Institut Ramon Llull, has emphasised that the Prague Quadrennial is an unmissable international event. Almeda has also noted that this is the third time that the Institute Ramon Llull has participated and expressed his hopes that it will be just as successful as last time, when Catalonia received a prize.