Behind the performance ( Interackje 2017 )

Piotrkow Trybunalski, one of the oldest cities in Poland.

Piotrkow Trybunalski, which was an important industrial centre for textiles and wood and glass products.

Piotrkow Trybunalski, which was annexed by Russia for 100 years.

Piotrkow Trybunalski, which was a capital before a city for many years.

Piotrkow Trybunalski, which was the first guetto established by the Nazis during the second war.

Piotrkow Trybunalski which is part of Holocaust History Archives.

It's what i read on internet before going to Poland.

Holocaust.

Like Holocaust of polish forest. It's the name they give to the massacre of trees, linked to the Szysko's Law. It's wat a polish friend wrote me, before going to Poland.

It's my first time in Poland.

There are my first steps on this earth.

The earth where was born Grotowski, who inspired me so much during my first steps in theatre world.

On the way from airport to the city, a lot of construction works.

On the way from the gallery to the hotel, a lot of churchs.

A lot of churches, a lot of crosses, a lot of Jesus, a lot of candles and wreath of flowers, a lot of abandoned buildings...

A belgian friend told me :

"When you'll go to Piotrkow Trybunalski, go to the end of the city.

Go to the end of the road and then you'll see a jewish cemetery.

Completely abandoned.

Go to see this place."

At the end of the road,

after many very well maintained cemeteries,

after many shops of flowers and candels and all material to celebrate dead people,

after many construction works,....

There, at the end of the road, on a corner, is a small cemetery. Closed and abandoned. The jewish cemetery.

There, the tombs sit among the tall grasses.

There, the dead seem not celebrated but abandoned among grasses and old trees.

Only a dog, an old man and old woman seem to take care of the death.

At the entrance, on a panel, is written in polish and english:

"The Piotrkow Trybunalski Municipal Government has be since 1996 engaged in the restoration of the Jewish Cemetery in Piotrkowie Trybunalskim.

So far, the following work was performed:

- construction of lapidorium

- reconstruction of small entrance gate

- renovation of iron entrance and the wicket at the main gate

- levelling more than 400 inclined or lying tombstones

- reconstruction of 40 tombstones frames

- maintenance work on more than 500 of burial plants

- the design for reconstruction of the cementery's fencing wall

- maintenance work involving the felling of self sown sucker trees and mowing of grass at arranged areas.

The works are carried out under the supervision of Mr.... "

The day before that, at the gallery, Lidka and Vwodek, gave me some help to save a tree srpout from some dumping ground behind the building. From small pieces of glass.

And then, on 11^th may, on morning...

Let me to lie down at the middle of busy people.

Let me to offer something free at the middle of shops.

Let me to offer seeds, by looking to the sky beyond the glass dome.

And then, on 11^th may, on evening...

Let me to be naked.

Let me to be a naked body.

A naked body to celebrate the ephemeral of bodies, the ephemeral of life.

A naked body to celebrate the vulnerability.

Vulnerability to face the art world related to status, money and appearance.

Vulnerability to face belief, bigotry, sexism and social body.

Vulnerability to face Extreme Right.

Let me to feel naked.

Feel naked like birds

Like some birds who attack windows

Like birds who are injured by guns

"C'est les oiseaux, jamais les balles, qu'on attaque en plein vol" was singing Anna Prucnal, who was born in Warsaw in 1940.

"It is the birds, never the bullets, that are attacked in their full flight"...

Feel naked

Feel naked like humans

Like some humans who attack walls or boundaries when some other spend their sunday with training in paramilitary groups. In Poland they are called " Sunday Soldiers"

Like humans who are killed by other humans

Like women who were crucified

Tell me...

Is it thrue that in Russia some farmers crucified women considered as witches during the 1921 famine?

Is it thrue that Florus ordered to crucify more than 3000 people?

Is it thrue that many women were crucified during the armenian genocide?

Why do we crucify?

Since when do we crucify?

What's our feeling when we see a crucified body?

What's our feeling when we see a naked body against a wall?

What's this fascination for crosses and crucifixions?

Where is our fascination for earth and trees?

Earth and trees

Earth which is free and doesn't have walls and boundaries

Earth which hosted us

Naked

Naked as we were when we were born

Naked and Free

Like birds

Like humans

A long time ago

Before we built walls and boundaries

A long time ago....

Thanks to Antoine, Antoni, Gisela, Gordian, Lidka, Kuba, Ryszard, Stanislav Piotr, Tosia, Wodek, all the team, volunteers and artists of Interackje 2017.