Fotini Stamatelopoulou: NEAR MISSES

NEAR MISSES is een luide schreeuw voor alle bijna-missen in het leven, een rauwe reis door tegenspoed en vernieuwing.

De residentie van Fotini STamatelopoulou wordt ondersteund door het European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists (EFFEA), medegefinancierd door de Europese Unie. Deze residentie is een samenwerking van SPRING met partnerfestivals MIRFestival (Griekenland) en Latitudes Contemporaines (Frankrijk).

NEAR MISSES is a performance that explores the body as a site of conflict, focusing on themes of resistance, chaos, and transformation. It investigates “near-to” experiences of bodily illness, failure, and the fight for survival, blending personal diary entries, protective symbolic objects, and intense physical states. The performer is accompanied by detachable metal objects and wearables, which function as both burdens and extensions of the body, creating a sonic and vocal altar that reveals acts of resilience and strength in moments of hardship.

Through fierce gestures, gargoyle-like facial expressions, and self-defense techniques, the work oscillates between silence and rage. The performance delves into the psychosocial connotations of faith, freedom, control, vulnerability, and shielding. It questions the need for an “armor of strength” and evokes the tension between impermanence and persistence, exposing the struggle for survival and renewal in the face of failure.

The work incorporates archival material from a year-long research phase, drawing on medieval protective acts, Byzantine symbols, Balkan traditions, and personal experiences of resisting death. These elements celebrate collective strength, self-defense, and historical fencing, while embedding memories and reflections into the performance.

NEAR MISSES is a loud scream for all the close calls in life, a raw journey through hardship and renewal.

The residency of Fotini Stamatelopoulou is supported by the European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists (EFFEA), co-funded by the European Union. This residency is a collaboration between SPRING and partner festivals MIRFestival (Greece) and Latitudes Contemporaines (France).