Berlin (Belgium)
The multimedia performance Zvizdal (Chernobyl – So Far, So Close) is a portrait of an elderly couple who refused to leave the forbidden zone surrounding the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant and continue to live there, farming their land in absolute isolation. It is a story of loneliness, poverty, and struggle for survival, but also a tale of determination, love, and hope.
BERLIN was founded in 2003 in Antwerp by Bart Baele, Yves Degryse, and Caroline Rochlitz. BERLIN’s original works combine film with poetry, documentary film with theater, and fiction with modern technology. Zvizdal was inspired by the work of French journalist Cathy Blisson, who first brought the old couple living in the forbidden zone to the attention of Baele and Degryse. The performance had its premiere at the Kunstenfestivaldesarts in Brussels in May 2016.
Credits
Concept: Bart Baele, Yves Degryse, Cathy Blisson
With: Nadia & Pétro Opanassovitch Lubenoc
Scenography: Manu Siebens, Ina Peeters, BERLIN
Interviews: Yves Degryse, Cathy Blisson
Camera & editing: Bart Baele, Geert De Vleesschauwer
Sound recordings: Toon Meuris, Bas de Caluwé, Manu Siebens, Karel
Verstreken
Interpreter: Olga Mitronina
Soundtrack & mixing: Peter Van Laerhoven
Construction set: Manu Siebens, Klaartje Vermeulen, Dirk Stevens, Kasper
Siebens, Kopspel, Rex Tee [stagiair]
Mechanics: Joris Festjens, Dirk Lauwers
Scale model: Ina Peeters, with the help of Puck Vonk, Rosa Fens en
Thomas Dreezen
Coproducers: Het Zuidelijk Toneel [Tilburg, NL], PACT Zollverein [Essen,
DE], Dublin Theatre Festival [IE], LE CENTQUATRE [Paris, FR],
Kunstenfestivaldesarts [Brussels, BE], Brighton Festival [UK],
BIT Teatergarasjen [Bergen, NO], Künstlerhaus Mousonturm
Frankfurt am Main [DE], Theaterfestival Boulevard [Den
Bosch, NL], Onassis Cultural Centre [Athens, GR]
In collaboration with: deSingel [Antwerp, BE]
With support of the Flemish Government
Thanks to Wim Bervoets, Brice Maire, Lux Lumen, Els De Bodt, Pascal
Rueff, Morgan Touzé, Christophe Ruetsch, Isabelle
Grynberg, Nadine Malfait, Natalie Schrauwen, Katleen
Treier, Piet Menu, Anthe & Ama Oda Baele, Remi & Ilias
Degryse
