AMNE(I)S(T)IA: Say Sorry
Director (Action Zoo Humain) and researcher (KASK/School of Arts/HoGent) Chokri Ben Chikha has been selected by the Institut del Teatre in Barcelona to direct a theatre production with a group of young alumni of the institute. After a series of auditions and some intense months of rehearsal AMNÈ(I)S(T)IA: Say Sorry will premiere in November 2018. Inspired by Amnesia/Amnesty, which deals with the similarities between ISIS fighters and collaborators, AMNÈ(I)S(T)IA: Say Sorry analyses the parallels between jihadists and supporters of the Franco regime. Léon Degrelle, leader of the Belgian fascist movement who was granted asylum in Francoist Spain after the Second World War, links the Belgian collaboration history to the dictatorship of Francisco Franco.
A group of young performers of the Institut del Teatre in Barcelona launch their own YouTube channel. In their videos the youngsters revolt against the hypocrisy behind the theatre and within society. They address societal themes and look for strategies to cope with collective traumas. The channel becomes a plea for radical empathy and a tribute to the power of imagination.
Credits
DIRECTION Chokri Ben Chikha CHOREOGRAPHY Laura Neyskens ACTORS/DANCERS (ALUMNI IT TEATRE BARCELONA) Jaume Forés Juliana, Eleazar Masdeu García, Tamara Ndong Bielo, Martina Pérez Vilarasau, Júlia Santacana Vall, Elena Santiago García, Joana Maria Sureda Matamalas, Martina Tresserra Pi, Jordi Romero PROJECT COORDINATION Ramon Simó, Pepelú Guardiola DRAMATURGY Laura Teresa Batllori Rodrigo, Judit López Torras DRAMATURGICAL ASSISTANCE Carles Batlle TRANSLATION Marc Puyol-Hennin (Capiche Surtitling) TECHNIQUE alumni ESTAE, Paula Miranda, Oriol Brusi Batllori TECHNICAL PRODUCTION Laura Gutiérrez PRODUCTION Institut del Teatre Barcelona COPRODUCTION Action Zoo Humain, Temporada Alta, CAET, Sala Beckett, KASK/School of Arts/HoGent PARTNERS NTGent, Theater Rotterdam WITH THE SUPPORT OF Stad Gent, de Vlaamse Overheid
PRESS
"AMNÈ(I)S(T)IA: Say Sorry is a clever parody of the way in which societies are willing to forget their pasts - currently a hot topic in Spain, where some people fear the return of fascism."
"It is the surface, the 'wikipedianess', the network of stories and references, of flags and identities, of porn and politics, that make AMNÈ(I)S(T)IA: Say Sorry quite up-to-date. Whereas the schematic design of the performance reminds of a lecture, the light-hearted way of linking a commercial media strategy to trauma therapy is touching."
"A group of young people try to understand the complex political situation in their homecountry. They build a YouTube channel around 'radical empathy', which means they put themselves in the shoes of both culprits and victims."
"Projects like this should continue to exist, both because of their subject matter and because of the opportunities they create for young actors to enter the working world."
"A very interesting play in which the ideas are confronted with ways to criticise them."
"'The great power of propaganda is to make others look like monsters', says Chokri Ben Chikha. The young cast passes on the message that not everything is lost yet. 'They are the future, the memory is in their hands'".
"AMNÈ(I)S(T)IA: Say Sorry makes the audience think about the importance of a second chance. Society condemns collectives, but doensn't pay attention to individuals that are part of them and, as such, tends to lack empathy."
"Despite the questions AMNÈ(I)S(T)IA: Say Sorry rises, it is also about certainties. The performance emphasises the need to break imposed silence and to find out how to ask for forgiveness."