Now he is a well-known director in Europe and desired by various theaters, who presents unexpected topics to the audience, which, according to him, are united by the desire to talk about consciousness, the phenomenon of its birth, and to give the audience not a play about experience, but the experience itself, which empowers all the senses. This time, the creative group is delving into quantum physics and the new ways of understanding our existence that it offers. The play for the play “Quanta” was written by his creative collaborator Joanna Bednarczyk, who also wrote the text for “Republika”, according to the LNDT press release.
– So, Łukaszai, Vilnius has already seen your plays “Loki” and “Respublika”, you surprised the audience and theater critics, and what did you think this time?
– First of all, after that crazy, maybe even suicidal “Republika” process, we are returning to the theater again. After exploratory, interactive theater, we return to the stage and the audience. I’m not interested in what happens on stage, I’m interested in what happens in the minds of the audience. Therefore, we use a hybrid theater method where we combine different media – sound design, music, erase the boundaries between video projections, cinema, live acting and choreography to create a unique experience, to find a unique language that no longer represents a script, no longer tells a story, but works on sensory levels . We strive hard to find a way to create that empowers all the senses and affects the audience mentally, intellectually and physically at the same time. I would say that the direction has not changed, the subject has changed. With this performance, we will start a science trilogy, the first part will be about quantum physics, we will try to see this phenomenon from different angles.
When you hear the words “quantum physics,” you think, “Oh my God, it’s so complicated. Even physicists don’t understand it.” It can be scary to go to such a performance because you are afraid of theories, problems, but I can assure you that the performance will definitely not be about physics theories, it will be about experiences inspired by quantum physics. I keep quoting Mark Rothko because I think he said one of the most important things: “A painting shouldn’t express an experience, the painting itself should be an experience.” This is also true in our practice of how to create realities of time and space that are not about something, but are by themselves and communicates with the audience on a non-linguistic level.
– How did you come up with the idea of delving into the world of quantum physics? How did you come up with this topic?
– When we started to create this performance, I thought about the previous works in the last 6 or 7 years and realized that we have already created a lot of scenes that would be perfect for this performance, because they are based on quantum perception of the world. But we don’t want to repeat ourselves, so we can’t show them. But for the first time it got a name. Without even reading Labatuto’s book (Benjamín Labatuto’s work “When we stop understanding the world” inspired the creation of this performance – A. P.), we would have arrived at quantum physics very quickly one way or another. It has a lot to do with all of our research.
Whatever the subject, it is ultimately about consciousness and the mystery of consciousness, how to live and feel the world, and extreme ways of experiencing it. It can be transcendence as in Republic, it can be crime and passion as in The Bear, it can be humanoids and artificial intelligence. However, these are all ways of seeing and experiencing the phenomenon of the birth of consciousness. It is true that the first inspiration came after reading Labatut’s book, we thought about creating an adaptation of it. I don’t like working on adaptations anyway, but this was one of the exceptions, because this material blew me away, I fell in love with it. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, we learned that he had already sold the copyright to Hollywood. I took it as a coincidence that leads to success, because in that book I was most interested in the stories of the physicists Erwin Schrödinger and Werner Heisenberg, so without getting the rights, we could discard the uninteresting parts (we didn’t have to build the whole book) and create something on our own. I was glad we narrowed down our topic.
We are planning to make a trilogy, the parts of which would reveal different aspects of 20th century science. Not only of the 20th century, but also of modern days, because with the help of facts and mockumentary method, we always talk about the present. We are planning that the second part will be about Alan Turing and artificial intelligence, the action will take place during World War II, and in Quanta we will focus on the year 1938.
– In the creative process, you all delve a lot into the topic – you read various books, watch films, and study historical sources. After all that you have read and learned, can you say what similarities quantum physics and humans have?
– Of course. Lots of similarities. I think quantum physics is very interesting because it requires a different way of thinking, you have to forget everything you knew about physics. We cannot fully understand quantum laws because our understanding of physics is based on the Newtonian model. So when a person starts thinking about quantum physics, he thinks that it is simply impossible, because it is based on contradictions, it has no logic. However, you can discover how beautiful it is, because it gives you the opportunity to believe in free will. She claims that at the subatomic level, things are random. And believe it or not, there’s just no reason. It can make you feel depressed or especially happy because there is no predeterministic way of thinking. It is a never-ending process that is happening now.
Schrödinger was one of the first physicists to lay the foundations for thinking about the possibility of multiverses. In fact, I am obsessed with the idea of multiverses. The time associated with them is another obsession I have when thinking about theater and life. I have a hard time believing in time or the conventional way of understanding time. As Einstein said, when you start thinking big, you realize that we humans are very limited. Our senses are very limited, we see only a very small part of the light, we hear very little. We are only in this world for a second, considering the infinity of the universe, but we also live on a scale too large to understand what is happening at the nano level. So we are somewhere in the middle – between a large system and a small one. Maybe it’s scary, but at the same time it gives us a completely different perspective of our existence. I believe that the inconsistency that is felt when thinking about quantum physics is very similar to human nature – we are not Newtonian creatures. We live in constant mystery – we have no idea how we will react to certain things.
Another similarity is the concept of superposition. This is one of the most amazing things about quantum physics. The atomic state superposition is not binary. It can be both zero and one at the same time. I feel it is very close to us. Humans are often in two states at the same time, only when we take action do we decide which path we will take and which of the two will become real. I believe that quantum physics is currently one of the best metaphors for studying how we function. This field of science is much more suitable for understanding our knowledge, psyche, and actions than the old Newtonian model, which no longer works.
– Did you miss Lithuanian actors? Your company?
– I am very happy that we meet with Lithuanian actors regularly during foreign tours, we saw each other during the revival of the play “Loki”, tours of “Respublikos”. Otherwise, as they say, I would die of longing. This is the coolest company I’ve ever met in my life. I’m really excited to be working with them again, there are actors I’m working with for the third time and there are a few new faces. It will be very interesting to see when they all come together to create that constellation of hoteliers and new guests.
– Do the same principles of working with actors remain: a democratic approach to creativity, a lot of conversations, a lot of delving into the topic and various related sources?
– These things don’t change, but since there are eight in this cast of twelve that I’ve already worked with, we could skip that team-buildingo a part I do all the time when I work in a new theater. The most important part of the preparatory, laboratory work is to create that company, as you say. In this case, we were already a group that just opened up to new members. Therefore, we missed many other elements that serve to get to know each other and we could start to delve more quickly into the topic and the essence.
It’s always very important to me not to use the actors instrumentally, but to create a basis for shared thinking, so we spent many hours in the lectures prepared by Joanna. We tried to understand as much as possible. We were forced to work really hard intellectually in order to create a world that is not based on emptiness, but on the creativity of each actor.
Over the years of working with improvisation, I have come to understand that it is an experimental process. As in science. We are very patient and record everything – every improvisation gives something. Sometimes it’s just an atmosphere, sometimes it’s a sentence. Sometimes, after 40 attempts, one improvisation appears that no playwright would write. It is born out of that strange synergy of working together, when the actors meet something they did not prepare for. However, such a creative process requires a lot of patience and waiting. And sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn’t. When working with actors, the most important thing is to see the beauty in each person, bring it out and use it to create the character.
– Tell us about the aesthetics of the play. 20th century style hotel and period costumes. Why was this decision made this time?
– Before creating the play, the characters and the script, my imagination must know where the action will take place. Place defines structure. It was the same this time. We thought: well, quantum physics, there will probably be some famous scientists, and we need to define a space that would be a place where we could experiment with movements, with time. We decided to choose a hotel that is a perfect no-man’s land, a place where everyone only comes for a limited time and leaves again.
And those old hotels, built at the beginning of the last century, are still with the same ones art deco decorations and people wear similar costumes. In fact, for the first time together with Svenja, the costume designer, we are working with historical costumes, we want to play with a time capsule – we will be in a hotel where the events of 1938 and now take place. It’s not like we want to recreate the 20th century. style – we create an alternative reality that has a taste of the past. It’s also about (thinking quantum physics again) how to break the linear way of thinking. There is no past and present. There is an eternal present, it is the only possible choice. The worlds of the multiverse exist on the same level, they cannot be supported by a cause and effect relationship. You have to break that understanding in your brain to experience what quantum physics is about.
– One gets the impression that there will definitely be a lot of quantum physics in the performance. What would you say to a viewer who is afraid that these are going to be very complicated topics and that they will not understand anything?
– I think the most important thing is to relax, be open and not look for answers. A beautiful quote from director Tarkovsky comes to mind: “When people try to understand my films, they miss the whole point.” It’s all about experience and exposure. This is what we are trying to do – to destroy some habits of thinking that are very harmful and lead to extremism or fanaticism. I don’t remember which physicist said, “The opposite of a true statement is a false statement.” But the opposite of a deep truth can be another deep truth.” I think it would be great if we could get the audience to understand that.
Quanta is created in collaboration with Onassis Culture Athens, De Singel Theater Antwerp, Boska Komedia International Theater Festival, National Theater Brno in the Czech Republic, Adam Mickevich Institute in Poland. The creation of the play is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, the partner of the play is NewError.
Actors who have already worked with the director: Vainius Sodeika, Nelė Savičenko, Rytis Saladžius, Airida Gintautaitė, Rasa Samuolytė, Algirdas Dainavičius, Martynas Nedzinskas, Gediminas Rimeika are playing in the play, as well as new role creators: Rimantė Valiukaitė, Arūnas Vozbutas, Aistė Zabotkaitė and Marius Čižauskas. .
The premiere of the Lithuanian National Drama Theater play “Quanta” will take place in the Great Hall on September 13 and 14 (tickets are still available). October 22-25 the play will be shown in Athens on December 7, 8. – in Kraków, at the international festival “Boska Komedia”, February 20-22. – again in Vilnius, April 25, 26. – Antwerp, Belgium, May 20, 21. – in the city of Brno in the Czech Republic.
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2024-09-06 13:48:23
Unlocking the Secrets of Consciousness: A Journey into Quantum Physics through Theater
In the world of theater, Łukaszai, a renowned director in Europe, is known for pushing boundaries and exploring unconventional themes. His latest project, “Quanta,” delves into the fascinating realm of quantum physics, promising to deliver an immersive experience that will empower all senses. In an exclusive interview, Łukaszai shares his inspiration behind this project, his fascination with consciousness, and the parallels between quantum physics and human existence.
Seeking a New Language in Theater
After the success of his previous plays, “Loki” and “Respublika,” Łukaszai is returning to the stage with a new approach. He’s not interested in what happens on stage, but rather in the minds of the audience. To achieve this, he’s employing a hybrid theater method that combines sound design, music, video projections, cinema, live acting, and choreography. This unique blend aims to create a sensory experience that transcends traditional storytelling.
Inspirations and Influences
Łukaszai’s fascination with quantum physics began after reading Benjamín Labatuto’s book, “When we stop understanding the world.” He was drawn to the stories of physicists Erwin Schrödinger and Werner Heisenberg, which sparked an idea for a trilogy of performances exploring different aspects of 20th-century science. The first part, “Quanta,” focuses on quantum physics in 1938, while the second part will delve into Alan Turing and artificial intelligence during World War II.
The Parallels between Quantum Physics and Human Existence
Łukaszai believes that quantum physics offers a unique perspective on human consciousness. He notes that, just like quantum laws, our understanding of the world is limited by our senses and perceptions. Both quantum physics and human existence are characterized by contradictions, randomness, and a lack of predeterministic thinking. This complexity can be both depressing and liberating, as it allows for the possibility of free will and multiverses.
The Search for Consciousness
Throughout his work, Łukaszai is driven by a desire to understand consciousness and its birth. He believes that this phenomenon is at the core of human existence, and that exploring it can reveal new ways of experiencing the world. His fascination with quantum physics stems from its ability to offer a new