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© Richard Terborg  6th Istanbul Fringe Festival's international guest Sanne van Dijk is a puppeteer and storyteller based in Amsterdam. Sanne graduated in acting from the Theatre Academy in Amsterdam in 2006 and also studied puppetry at the Hochschule für Schauspielkunst Ernst Busch in Berlin. Sanne played the main character in the sci-fi film Gliese 581 , which was selected for the 2015 Imagine Film Festival, and was nominated for the International EMMY Children's Awards 2020 for the TV production Dropje (Doopie) , in which she played the main character as a puppeteer. In her work, Sanne draws on her own life experiences to reveal universal truths that transcend different cultures and societies. By daring to speak honestly about her own struggles and challenges in life, Sanne provokes the audience to confront their own struggles. In her interdisciplinary work VLOED (FLOOD) , which we had the opportunity to see at the Istanbul Fringe Festival, Sanne combined acting, puppetry ...

The 6th Istanbul Fringe Festival's international guest choreographer, dancer and founder of Compagnie Entity, French-American Thibaut Eiferman completed his classical training at the American Ballet Theatre School in New York and danced with Ballet BC (Vancouver, Canada), Ate9 Dance Company (Los Angeles, USA) and Batsheva Dance Company (Tel Aviv, Israel). Currently dancing in Christian François Ben Aïm Company's Facéties and Oona Doherty/OD Works' Navy Blue , Eiferman created her first choreography HHH in 2018. The short version of HHH won first prize at the Jerusalem Machol Shalem International Choreography Competition in 2018 and the Critics' Prize at the Hannover Choreography Competition in 2019, and was selected for the 2020 edition of the Danse Élargie competition for young choreographers organised by the Paris Theatre de la Ville. HHH (Hand, Heart, Head) , the long version of which we had the opportunity to see at this year's Istanbul Fringe Festival, is de...

What is the essence of performance in your opinion? The essence of dance and art, in my opinion, lies in their remarkable ability to unite people from diverse cultures and backgrounds. Regardless of the challenges that may arise, art and dance persist, consistently propelling society forward. It’s striking to observe how even in times of adversity, such as natural disasters, floods, and fires, the world can be filled with turmoil, yet artists continue to create and inspire. This enduring spirit of artistic expression has transcended generations. A poignant example of this is how, during World War II from 1940 to 1945, Walt Disney released beloved films like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs , Dumbo , and Bambi in Europe. This unwavering passion and dedication to our craft deeply moves me. To me, the essence of dance is encapsulated within this resilience and unwavering love for what we do.  Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How? Absolutely, I firmly believe in the t...

What is the essence of performance in your opinion?  As a dancer, I always try to present physicality to the audience.  Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How?  I believe that dance transcends language and is a way for people to interact.  When you are working on a piece, what sources inspire you? Do dreams play a role in your works?  I get my inspiration from everyday real life. The music, novels, and movies I listen to on a daily basis are also a big influence.  When do you decide to give a title to a work you are working on if it already does not have one?  I always start my work by deciding on a title. The title suggests to me the direction in which the work should go.  Are there any artist or person whom you think influenced your art most? And if there is such an artist or person, who?  I was heavily influenced by old punk rock bands. Their spirit and attitude of thinking is the source of my activities.  When you con...

What is the essence of performance in your opinion? The performance proposes an existential preposition of trying to find closure in trauma memories using artistic interventions. An attempt at a ritual ‘Going back to forget’. Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How?   Yes. I believe that a theatrical space has the power to move mountains and touch the viewers in that space. But it also has the power to shift thoughts on a micro level, to charge the experience in the moment with something unfathomable. When you are working on a piece, what sources inspire you? Do dreams play a role in your works?   Dreams haven't played any roles in my works and inspirations so far. My works are grounded in long research into a particular subject matter, an issue, working with a certain community of people and their skill sets. As a performance maker who is interested in notions of documentary theatre and social practice, inspiration, ideas and forms emerge from the people I work...

©Kenneth Morton  Celebrating its 5th anniversary this year, the Istanbul Fringe Festival, which took place between 16th - 23rd September, presented innovative and alternative shows in theatre, dance and performance from Turkey and around the world, as well as workshops and panels.  This week's guest is The How Theatre, an international ensemble of movement artists, actors and musicians based in New York. The How's mission is to create a space where audiences and artists can be challenged by a variety of perspectives, forms and stories. The company members believe in taking the emotional warmth of the world and manifesting it in physical form, breaking convention. Experimenting theatrically and involving musicians in their work, The How Theatre presented My Favorite Person at the festival, a two-person movement theatre piece that explores the dynamics of relationships between men and women using space, form and sound. Now it's time for our interview with the its director, P...

© Efrat Mazor  What is the essence of performance in your opinion?  To me, the essence of performance is sharing space and time with a group of people that will never again come together.  Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How?  I absolutely do! As both a performer and an audience member, I have felt transformed by art. I feel I never enter and exit the stage the same. There is always some evolution, development, shift that occurs in that heightened state of being watched and of performing. Whether it is a miniscule, chemical change or a life-altering epiphany, every performance presents the opportunity to grow, often in very unexpected ways.    When you are working on a piece, what sources inspire you? Do dreams play a role in your works? When I am working on a piece I try to keep my receivers open. I try to pay attention to what I am drawn to, what memories (often seemingly unrelated) arise, what music, images, movies, tv shows attract ...

© Gianluca Laneve What is the essence of performance in your opinion? In our opinion the true essence of performance lies in its immediacy, creating an intense and profound experience. Performance is often ephemeral, existing only in the moment of its execution, and this transience adds value to the art by making it unique and unrepeatable. Performance aims to evoke emotions in the audience through the sincerity of expression, encouraging reflection, understanding, and change for both the artist and the audience. All of this, we think, is undoubtedly the beating heart of a performance. Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How? We believe that art can have a profound impact on people's lives, providing comfort, inspiration, and a sense of purpose for those who create or artistic experience. Personal and collective transformation can indeed occur through this process, helping individuals overcome traumas and discover new perspectives on life. Art can foster intercultura...

What is the essence of performance in your opinion? For us performances are essentially about entertaining. We want the audience to feel something, whether the performance makes them laugh, disturbs them or makes them feel sad. We want to move people by connecting with them. Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How? Yes. Think of the world without art. How it would sound, look, feel etc? To create or connect with art, is to transform therefore we are constantly transformed by it, more so if we are open to it. Essentially it is a way to understand and feel life. When you are working on a piece, what sources inspire you? Do dreams play a role in your works? Funnily enough, when we are together, say on tour and see one another first thing in the mornings, we always talk through our dreams. Eleanor’s always having these huge surrealist dreams which I love to listen to. They certainly influence what we talk about that day but no, dreams don’t directly connect into our work. ...

Korean dancer/choreographer Sung-Im Her graduated from the famous P.A.R.T.S. dance school and later worked with important dance companies such as Les ballets C. de la B. and Needcompany. NUTCRUSHER, choreographed by Sung-Im Her questions the objectification of women, the relationships we establish with our bodies, and how the body is represented, with repetitive gestures and an energetic language of movement, taking the influence of the #metoo and #timesup movements in the background in South Korea. NUTCRUSHER will take place at Alan Kadıköy on June 5-6, 2023, as part of the 2022-2023 seasonal shows of the Istanbul Fringe Festival with the support of the British Council. On this occasion we interviewed Sung-Im Her. What is the essence of performance in your opinion? We are doing live performance and there is uniqueness to it. We breathe and feel together in the same place, same moment, with no phone, no internet, no digital. For me, that is the core part of live performance and I reall...

In this series of interviews we try to get to know the artists who will perform in Fringe Festival Istanbul 2022. Our last guest is Inez Wolters from LaPiratesse. Ayse Draz, Art Unlimited Performing Arts Editor & Mehmet Kerem Ozel, Writer La Piratesse & Claroscuro Concert Extravagant @ Concertzaal Tilburg  © Chris Heijmans What is the essence of performance in your opinion? LaPiratesse is a live music band, but we call it a performance band as well, because we want to give the audience a different experience than most live bands do. Performance adds elements to the show that gives you more than just a music concert. The character changes and the extravagant, self made costumes, the visuals, the spoken word and the dance add more layers to it. So the essence of performance would be opening up the eyes of the spectator, surprise them, give them something to think about, try to involve them in our journey. Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How? Almost impossib...

In this series of interviews we try to get to know the artists who will perform in Fringe Festival Istanbul 2022. Our fourth guest is Rachel Lum from Deca.Dance Co.  Ayse Draz, Art Unlimited Performing Arts Editor & Mehmet Kerem Ozel, Writer What is the essence of performance in your opinion? It is to inspire, express and mostly importantly, connect with the audience. Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How? YES! Back home, I work closely with elderly communities. I observe first-hand how art and movement can transform a person’s outlook on life. I have even witnessed personality changes for the better through engaging in the arts. When you are working on a piece, what sources inspire you? Do dreams play a role in your pieces? I pull inspiration from the moment in time I am in, whatever season of life, phase, life stage, all that is around, is what I put out as my artistic language. When do you decide to give a title to a piece you are working on if it already ...

In this series of interviews we try to get to know the artists who will perform in Fringe Festival Istanbul 2022. Our third guest is Dana Naim Hafouta.   Ayse Draz, Art Unlimited Performing Arts Editor & Mehmet Kerem Ozel, Writer What is the essence of performance in your opinion? If I have to narrow it down to a title I would say ‘Transcendence’. For me it means a performer is fully committed to whatever is happening to them at the specific moment, and really lets these happenings change and shift them, mentally and physically. I think this commitment, alongside a control you have to have while performing, can bring a ‘Rise above’, a transcendence. But I believe it’s not something you can instruct, people are different (the same but different), and each performer has to look for their own transcending inner escalader. Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How?   I really do. I believe it has great power on both aspects - as an art practitioner and as an ...

In this series of interviews we try to get to know the artists who will perform in Fringe Festival Istanbul 2022. Our second guest is Eleni Papaioannou from A(r)CT. Ayse Draz, Art Unlimited Performing Arts Editor & Mehmet Kerem Ozel, Writer What is the essence of performance in your opinion? A performance, for me, is life magnified, reproduced, represented, reoccuring in front of your eyes. The essence of a live performance is the exchange of energy and ideas through movement or words, through images, music and aesthetics. A performance is filled with emotions and motions. It is a shortcut to the creator’s soul and a window to his/her creative mind. That’s why, in my opinion, to watch a performance is something sacred. Something we should really admire, whether we get attracted to it or not. Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How? I deeply believe that art has the power to transform people and societies and it has been proven many times in the past, in both politic...