Manchester, UK – Performance artist Marina Abramović is pushing boundaries once more with “Balkan Erotic Epic,” a daring new show featuring nudity, large-scale phallic imagery, and a deeply personal exploration of her relationship with her mother. The production, currently running at Aviva studios in Manchester until October 19th before embarking on an international tour, incorporates a fictionalized portrayal of Abramović’s mother, a decorated army major, who progressively “liberates” herself within the performance through dancing and disrobing.
The show, described as Abramović’s most daring yet, delves into themes of liberation and familial complexity. Abramović revealed that her mother, a staunch communist, would meticulously censor any images of nudity from press clippings sent to her, reducing 360-page articles to approximately 72 pages. This contrasted sharply with the artist’s later discovery, through her mother’s diaries after her death from dementia, that her mother secretly desired to raise her as a “warrior” and refrained from physical affection, believing it would “spoil” her. “If I had read one page of her diary while she was alive, my life would have been different with her,” Abramović stated.
“Balkan Erotic Epic” features 13 scenes and incorporates elements intended to challenge societal norms and explore personal history. Abramović intends to celebrate her 80th birthday with a large party amidst the show’s provocative imagery when it reaches the Park Avenue Armory in New York next year, jokingly expressing her hope that Donald Trump will avoid the performance’s nudity. despite a busy schedule-her diary is booked until 2029 and she recently underwent a knee replacement-Abramović has declined a request from a German filmmaker to create a retrospective of her life, deeming it “too early.”
The production will continue its international tour following its manchester run.
