Ferðalag Fönixins
- Year
- 2011
- Type
- Theatre
- Role
- Writer, actor, dancer and producer
- Venue
- Borgarleikhúsið
- Director
- María Ellingsen
How do we deal with hard experiences that shake our existence and bring darkness and pain? How do we let go, allow part of ourselves to die, and yet carry on and be reborn? This is the eternal challenge of human life. Joseph Campbell, one of the world’s foremost mythologists, said that myths are like dreams that humanity dreams together – dreams that help us understand the world and our place in it.
In this dance-theatre work, Ferðalag Fönixins (The Journey of the Phoenix), which premiered on the Main Stage of Reykjavík City Theatre at the Reykjavík Arts Festival, the dancer Reijo Kela, the actor María Ellingsen and the singer Eivør Pálsdóttir share the stage. They lead the audience into the fire and offer them a chance to reflect their own experience in this universal myth about the art of dying and being reborn.
The idea and initiative were María’s, but the piece was developed and created by the group. The production went on to tour widely in the Nordic countries.
Reviews
„An enchanting production“
„An unusual journey, a production that stood out at the Arts Festival“
„In this original production of The Journey of the Phoenix, it is not only the content that speaks to you but the way the art forms flowed together as each artist worked their magic, creating a unique spell and a magnificent whole. Both Reijo Kela and María Ellingsen have a strong, compelling presence and perform with precision. Their partly improvised interplay was perfectly attuned, and without saying a single word they created two believable characters, people of flesh and blood. The visual design is simple and stylish but all the more considered and powerful for it. The set consists of the labyrinth, the smoke and two chairs – and the performers’ bodies, dressed in brilliantly shaped costumes that become visual, moving sculptures in play with the changing colours of the light.“
