Petrit Halilaj's Opera of Kosovan Memory and Myth

"At the Hamburger Bahnhof, the props, costumes, and set pieces of the musical are staged in vignettes throughout a large hall: a life-sized horse sculpture in a pink clearing surrounded by dirt, a curtained cart set up as a stage with a figure on its steps, two life-sized human figures in animal masks perched in a high window, as if observing the events."

"A conventional curatorial conceit, restagings of performances without performers often fail when they reach for too much fidelity to the original. With Syrigana, however, the original objects and music are used to create something similar but distinct."

"Through his fantastical vignettes, Halilaj suggests curiosity about others as a way to neutralize the forces that lead to difference-based violence."

Petrit Halilaj's first major institutional presentation at Hamburger Bahnhof features a restaging of his opera Syrigana, originally performed with the Kosovo Philharmonic near his hometown of Runik, Kosovo. Rather than attempting strict fidelity to the original performance, the installation creates something distinct by repurposing props, costumes, and set pieces as vignettes throughout a large hall. These include a life-sized horse sculpture, a curtained cart stage, and human figures in animal masks positioned in a high window. Accompanied by audio recording and reactive lighting, the installation invites visitors to sit on kilim rug-covered banks and experience the narrative like reading a novel. Syrigana represents the culmination of Halilaj's ongoing thematic investigations exploring curiosity as a means to neutralize violence based on difference.

Read at Hyperallergic