Premiere of The Knot, directed by Žiga Divjak

At a time when Europe is allocating hundreds of billions of euros to rearmament and states are increasing their military budgets, our new auteur theatre production The Knot, directed by Žiga Divjak, explores how militarisation gradually finds its way into everyday life.

The production does not address war as a distant political reality, but as a process that begins long before the first shot is fired: in language, space, the body, family stories, and in the ways we imagine the future.

– When we began working on this performance, we brought in scenes that were connected to our personal experiences of living in the city of Rijeka, and to our family stories. We brought these stories together using scenographic elements drawn from fragments of Rijeka, as well as from the world we inhabit: a world filled with the ruins of industrial promises of a brave new future. And yet, where we might expect to find only an ending, small, stubborn possibilities begin to emerge.

Director and dramaturg Žiga Divjak emphasises that war never begins at the moment of armed conflict.

– The destructive effects of war begin long before the first shot is fired, while its catastrophic consequences continue long after the last shot has been fired. I believe we must do everything we can to stop this reckless rush towards war.

The premiere will take place on Saturday, 20 June, as part of the Rijeka Summer Nights Festival organized by Croatian National Theatre Ivan pl. Zajc Rijeka, with performances on 21 and 22 June. All performances begin at 9 p.m. at DeltaLab, Delta 5 (former Ivex). The premiere and subsequent performances in Ljubljana will take place from 12 to 14 September at Stara mestna elektrarna.

The creative team behind The Knot consists of co-authors and performers Anja Sabol, Vanda Velagić and Klara Kovačić of Igralke Collective; director and dramaturg Žiga Divjak; composer Blaž Gracar; set designer Igor Vasiljev; stage manager Ana Jurčić; and lighting designer and technical director Marin Lukanović.

We would like to thank everyone who took part in the research and contributed to the creation of the production, as well as DeltaLab for providing the venue for the performances at the former IVEX site!

The production will be surtitled in English.

The Knot is a co-production of the artistic organisation Igralke Collective and Maska Ljubljana, in partnership with the Croatian National Theatre Ivan pl. Zajc Rijeka. The project is co-funded by the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, the City of Rijeka, the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia, and the City of Ljubljana. The work of the artistic organisation Igralke Collective is supported by the Kultura Nova Foundation.

Visual designer: Oleg Morović