Mallorca a Estíria - Schwgrmttrtchtrsprchn
A hybrid and multilingual performance with Ursula Graber and her Catalan mother-in-law Eulàlia Purtí about languages and dialects, identity and family relationships.
The lecture performance uses the dialects of Styrian and Mallorquin (and brings Mallorca to Styria, so to speak) as well as the languages Standard German, Catalan and Spanish.
The addition “Schwgrmttrtchtrsprchn” is an German word whose vowels have been removed. It is a sound mimic that expresses how the German language sounds to non-native speakers.
#languages #dialects #mother tongue #identity #multilingualism #mother-in-law #intercultural #gestures #language of movement #cross-generational
About Mallorca a Estíria, by Bàrbara Raubert (Dramaturgy)
We sing about love in all languages and we love in all languages, no matter if they are more melodious or rougher, more or less vocal, spoken by many or few. Liebe, amor, amour, love… Can we fall in love with words?
Words make us think. And since we think in words, language structures our thinking and every language leaves traces in our thinking mechanisms. But the reality created by language is limited to the world of literature, for in our daily life reality is stubbornly fleeting. Language can be little more than a clumsy device to try to explain what we feel, and then only if it doesn’t directly lead us to misunderstanding and argument; even if we all spoke the same language and loved each other unconditionally, sooner or later there would be difficulties in understanding. But what if we also live in bilingual cultures? How do languages love each other?
Ursula Graber loves in several languages: in contemporary dance, in clown, burlesque, theater language… Also in Styrian (her native dialect) and in Catalan (the language of her adoptive country). In Catalonia she met Eulàlia, the Catalan teacher and German student who is also her mother-in-law. The love story they act out on stage points in many directions: traveling to get rid of an uncomfortable identity, distances traveled to get to know each other and remote places to find oneself; to express yourself with more words. Finally, in “Mallorca a Estíria - Schwgrmttrtchtrsprchn” the missing vowels are a reminder of all the callsigns these voyages will produce - and all the emotions that can never be expressed in words.
Credits
Concept,choreograpyy: Ursula Graber
Performance: Ursula Graber and Eulàlia Purtí (Nats teatre)
Dramaturgy: Bàrbara Raubert
Costume: Ana Vivero
Sociological advice: Karin Scaria-Braunstein
Directing Advice: Joan Monells
Production, PR: Ursula Graber, Mirella Bärnthaler
Production assistant: Andreas Krampl
Lighting and sound engineering: Peter Spall
Photos: Edi Haberl
Video: Fabian Czernovsky
Premiere as part of the festival newsOFFstyria on September 15, 2021, Graz
Duration: 60 mins
With friendly support from
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REVIEWS
“The intercultural two-person project, a lecture performance, turns out to be a beautiful, light and non-binding experience with cheerful moments.”” (Daniel Hadler, Kleine Zeitung)
“Because exploring the relationship between these two women is just as interesting as exploring Catalan and Styrian.” (Hannah Michaeler, Kronenzeitung)
“Authenticity is (not only on stage) a good prerequisite for successful communication, for building (honest) connections: And Ursula Graber brings this quality with her as soon as she is on stage (…).” (Eveline Koberg, dance critic)
The whole review by Eveline Koberg on tanz.at: Please click HERE.
An excerpt about Mallorca a Estíria follows here:
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