"Ifthecooperationofthousandsofmillionsofcellsinthebraincanexpandourcapacityfor

consciousness,theideathatthecooperationofthewholeofhumanityorafractionofthis,
determinewhatComtecalledaGreatBeingsuperumanobecomesmoreacceptable
"JBSHaldane.

Performaction...Whatisit?

Performactionisaformoftotalimprovisationwhosepracticalandtheoreticalconceptwas
createdbyAntonioBiloCanellaandhasbeendevelopedsince1991.
ThoughthestudyandtheoryofPerformactionhasstartedin1991,thepracticaldevelopment
andaconsiderablenumberofshowshavebeenconductedsince1997withthehelpofthe
fundamentalHosseinTaheri,ItaloIranianactorartist.After2011variousotherperformative
ensembleshaveeventuatedthelastensembleisincollaborationwiththepoetandthe
performactionerAlessiaD'Errigo,andthedirector,writerandactorGiovanniGreco.
HavingdefinedPerformazioneasaparticularlyadvancedformoftotalimprovisation,lets
specifywhatwemeanby
improvisation.
Buttodosowehavetotakeasmallstepback.
Tryingasimplifiedontologywecouldsaythatthe
artistic
creationhasalwaysoscillated
betweentwopolarities:
thelogicalrational,
whichistheultimate
sophisticationcraft:
theconsciousand

interminableworkingsovertimetodefineandcrystallizeaFORM,presentableonthe
outsideandpreservableintime.
theanalogirrational,
whichisthe
fury,themania,theinspiration
thatcreatesina
higherstateofconsciousness,
extemporaneously.

Insomewaywecouldassimilatethesetwopolaritiestothemainpolarityofourcerebral
hemispheres,theleftandright,andthentotheeternalfight/dancebetweenlogicandinsanity.
Infact,weareabletosaythattheinspiration(Furor,Mania),by

itself,cannotguaranteean
outcomethathasaestheticandartisticvalueandalsothecrafttechniqueisunabletodoso
aswell.Atthispoint,likePlatohimselfremindsus:"Hewho,withoutsuchaFurore,knocksat
thedooroftheMuses,persuadedthatartisenoughtomakehimapoet,willnotachievethe
intended,andthepoetryofthosewhothinkitwillbeeclipsedbythepoetryofthosewhorave.
(...)Thismadnessisgiventousbythegodsasthegreatestoffortunes.Ourdemonstration
willnotfindfaithamongthereasonersforjob,butwillfinditamongthewises."(Phaedrus
444446).
Instead,thenonbisection,namelythemergeof
handycraft
(logicalrationalwork)withthe
furormaniainspiration
(analogirrationalcondition),cangeneratethehighestartisticevents.
Infact,resultsofunquestionableartisticvalue,improvisation,inallthearts,maybereached
whenpracticedasaroutetowardsthesummitofartandcraft,
furtherandbeyond
themost
highlyspecializedartandcraft.
For
Performazione
,therefore,becomesnecessarytodefineanyreferencepointsthatsave
fromthetrapinwhichImprovisationoftenfalls:theplacewhereanyonecandoanything.
AndpreciselythroughthesereferencepointswelldefinePerformazione(Performaction).


Firstofall,
PerformazioneisdefinedasaformofArt
:thismeansthatitsprimaryobjective
isthecreationofArtisticWorks.Thisisitsheart:itisntfunnyentertainment(likemostofthe
improvisationaltheater),norasocialorpsychologicaltool(seeotherformsofimprovisational
theaterasPlaybackTheatre,orTeatrodell'OppresoofAugustoBoal).
SpecificallyPerformazionerejectsanyformof"match"orcompetition:itisnota
demonstrationofskillorvirtuosity.AnyskillinPerformazioneisputattheserviceofthe
creationoftheArtisticWork.
ThePerformactionersareartistswhohaveachievedexcellence
intheircraftandhave
chosentogofurther:theyarenotactors,musicians,dancers,etc..."improvised".
Performazioneseeksasynthesisbetweentheaforementionedpolarity
:the
performactionerreachesthecreationthroughanalteredstateofconsciousness,butcreatesa
story,nomatterhowsurrealanddreamlikeitis:astorymadeupwith
elementsofwisdom
"madly"generatedalsouseshisextremecraftmasterytogivetotheinspirationthe
appropriate
body,voice,music(andthegreaterwillbethemanifestationofnew
possibilities,givenfromtheElsewhere).
PerformazioneisbasedonListening
:afull,totalListening,notjustlogicalrational,notonly
listeningtothewordsbutthewholeofsouls,bodies,voices,music,lighting,stageand
audienceyouwanttocreatehumanGestalts:thereareno"solos."
LaPerformazioneisaformofartascompleteaspossible
:the
internalartists
(actors,
dancers,singers)arealwaysinrelationshipwith
externalArtists
(musicians,lighting

designers,setdesigners):
performingalltogetheratthesame
time.
PerformazioneinvolvestheSTUDYofatheme
(forexample,theOdyssey,orHamlet)
on
whichtheartistswork
formonths,throughdiscussions,readings,research,etc...andthen,
intheend,theygoonstage.
InPerformazioneyoudonotquote,
inthesensethatyoudonotmentionanythingaboutthe
materialstudied,whatemergesistheresultofunconsciousprocessing,stimulatedbythe
studycarriedbutabsolutely
nologically
generated.
Performazione'snotbasedonanytypeofstructure
(seeinimprovisationaltheaterthe
longformHaroldandsimilar,orthematchesofimprovisation,etc...),notowels,noformat,no
defaultcharacters:whenyougoonstage
thereisabsolutelynohandhold
,itgoesintothe
Void.
Performazioneusesallpossiblelanguages
:
inparticular,itreducesthepresenceofDaily
Realism
(onwhichalmostalltheimprovisationaltheaterworks)infavorofdreamlike,surreal
andpoeticcreations:anartistcanbecomeaspeakingfelafel,aswellasHamlet,aswellasa
cloudsalamander,etc...
ThePerformazioneisakindofsacredgame
,meaningthattheartistsarealways
totally
involved
(wewouldsayina"trance")intransformationsthatembodyandnot"ogle"everto
thepublic(ashappensinmanyformsofimprovisationaltheater).
ThePerformazioneincludesaudiencebutleavesitinitsroleof"witness"
:theaudience
determinesthegivenconditionsanddifferentaudiencesgeneratedifferentPerformactions,
butdonotexpectanystructuralinvolvementiftheaudienceisdirectlyinvolvedisbecause
theartistwantedittobeasapartoftheartisticcreation,butmaynotevenhappen.

During20yearsofresearchandshowswewerealsowondering:howcanweguaranteethe
extraordinaryoutcome,thatwearelookingfor,takenasgiven,thefactthatthereisnotatext?
ApossibleanswerwasfoundbycarefullystudyingthevideosofallPerformactionsthathave
takenplaceandcomparingthisstudywithourowndirectspectacularexperienceonthe
stage:wehaverecognizedtwospecificcrossedphenomena,
ResearchoftheArchetype
and
GestalticEmergentism
.
Performactionerstraintolookfor
particular
combinationsofbodies,souls,objects,lightand
musicthat"resonate".Theydonotknowthembefore,theyhavenotpreparedthem,butthey
lookforthemandsensethetremendouspotentialenergy:thesecombinationsarethe
Archetypes,organismswhoseelementsareinarelationshipthatgeneratesadditionalvalue
farmorethanthesumoftheparts(GestalticEmergentism).Thecombinationofmany
Archetypesleadstoanhightemperaturemostoftimeshigherthantemperaturereached
byshowswrittenandrehearsed,preciselybecauseithappensthereforthefirsttime.Andall
thiscanonlyhappenifyouareabletoremaininastateof"furor"andnotofrationallogic.In
addition,thesamestorythattheshowtellsarisefromthesuccessionandinteractionofallthe
Archetypesfoundfromtimetotime.
Anotherthingtopointout,asasideeffect,itisthenecessary
killingofthe
ego:the

spectacularresultisobtainedonlythroughArchetypes,whichbydefinitionaregroup
creations:

alone,inaPerformaction,youwillnotgetanywhere.


CurrentlyPerformazioneispracticedinanumberofwaysthatevolvecontinuously,even
whenitcomestotothematerialonwhichwechoosetoworkandartisticensemblemembers
(onlyvoiceandmusic,body,voiceandmusic,dance,voiceandmusic,video,dance,voice
andmusic,painting,music,voiceandbodies,etc....).

ThelanguageusedbythePerformactionincludesandcombinesalltheartformsfrequented
byhumans,withtheonlycriticaldifferencethatthey
emergeaccordingtotheneedofthe
moment
andarenotpredetermined:moreeverydaymomentscouldtakeplace,or
grotesqueorsurrealorabstractpoetry,storytelling,music,bodiesthattranscendthe
ordinaryandinventparalleluniverses,emotiveandamazing.

Perhapstosumup,wecoulddefinePerformazioneasakindofareborn
MysteryTheater,
wherethe
sacred
and
theprofane
mingleandcollaborateinordertoexplorenewunknown
universes.
HerearesometitlesandrelatedmaterialofsomePerformactionsofthepast:
De
Heliogabalus,materialsfromEliogabaloA.Artaud,ApolloniusofTyanabyPhilostratus,
HistoriaAugusta,HistoryofRomebyT.Mommsen.
TheSacred
Game,materialofPKDick,theIChingandtheKoran.
UomOOmega,
materialsOperaomniaofT.Sturgeon,TeillhardDeChardin.
Hamletandthe
Revolution,materialsofHamletbyWilliamShakespeare,SaxoGrammaticus,
IlMulinoHamlet,NorseMythology,contemporaryeconomictheories,HamletMachinebyH.
Muller,modernsewerage.

Performazioneiscurrentlyinpreparationofthethemeof
Odyssey.

Links:

www.performazione.com

TrailerPerformazione:
PERFORMATRAILEREXPLAIN
http://youtu.be/gwCEu4yD7Bw

Extracts(24min)fromtheprojectHamlet

HamletandtheKnowledgeofGoodandEvil

andtheRosselli1Hamlet

Hamlet2andRosselli

HamletandRosselli3

InterviewvideoonPerformazione(italian):
http://youtu.be/XDeq0RVuVis

ArticlesonPerformazione:
http://www.psychodreamtheater.org/rivistapassparnousvidegnumeropsychodreamreview
amletoelarivoluzionedisaramaddalena.html
http://www.succedeoggi.it/2013/10/ilteatrodalnulla/

http://www.omero.it/omeromagazine/why/lachiamanoperformazione/

http://paolofusi.it/category/2013/febbraio2013/

http://taccuinodiwatson.altervista.org/ildestinodelteatro/?doing_wp_cron=1392580618.2844
519615173339843750

http://www.omero.it/omeromagazine/interviste/conversazioneconilfondatoredicineteatroa
ntoniobilocanella/