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Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
THE STAGE version of Franz Kafka's Josephine, The Singer
premiered on April 15, 2005, at The Diorama where
it runs until May 1, 2005.
Welcome, then, to Cafe Arco where we meet Josephine, a singer
whose real talent lies not in her voice, but in creating an enchanting
atmosphere. As such, she's a sensation but it's all a far cry
from the reality of her hopelessly laborious life.
So, when her people refuse to exempt her from work, Josephine
becomes silent.
Josephine, The Singer is presented by StoneCrabs who
explore with strength and passion the contour of Kafka's mind,
thus creating a dense 'Kafkaesque' atmosphere.
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Five performers from five different
countries - Brazil, Spain, England, Italy and Japan - attempt
to find Josephine's voice in a production that aims to provoke
thoughts on the place of art and artists in society, and to question
the fragile construction of our identities and how we are pulled
to pieces by our own social emptiness.
Kafka belonged to no particular school and, as such, is an inspiration
for artists, philosophers, writers and readers. His name is synonymous
with absurdity and the dark side of modernity.
The geographical position of his birth, as well as his education,
mirrors wider complexities - a permanent pulling from east to
west. Raised in Jewish culture and with a preference for the Czech
language over his native German, Kafka internalised not only Prague's
identities and divisions, but the social and political turmoil
of the fin de siecle.
All this is reflected in the performance, with StoneCrabs drawing
audiences into the very heart of Kafka's world - in an entertainment
descibed as thought-provoking, deeply absurd and sardonic.
Tickets are priced £12 (£8 concessions).
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