Paradisum explores the myth of rebirth following the silence of a destroyed world, where the means of communication is the body, and the only common language is movement. The creatures of this idyllic existence unfold from the ever-changing, swirling natural forces of the ‘fabric of life’ pulsating around them to reach the anima mundi, the world soul, through scenes of purification, birth, awakening and ritual.

Directed and choreographed by Bence Vági, the performance explores the new possibilities of cirque danse, a genre that combines contemporary dance and circus arts, in search of an ethereal language of movement expressing the concerns of humanity.

After My Land (2018), which drew on the power of the motherland, and Solus Amor (2020), which told of love across time and space, IMA (2022) evoked the creative power of silence. In Paradisum, Recirquel's new production, the ‘fabric of life’ weaves its way through the natural world, organically creating new forms of being, ones without memories, pain or beliefs, where movements are instinctive. They experience the power of community and create a harmonious balance with pure love and trust.

The choreography draws on the aerial and ground genres of circus arts through the medium of contemporary dance to take the cirque danse genre, already well known from Recirquel's productions of the past few years, to new dimensions. To create the performance, Bence Vági invited artists from various fields, with whom Paradisum's unique form language was forged over several months of development in the field of movement. Well-known performers from the company's previous productions, Zita Horváth, Renátó Illés and Gábor Zsíros, Paradisum's co-choreographers, as well as Kristóf Várnagy, who participated in the creative process as a creative collaborator alongside Nándor Holp and Aliz Schlecht, played an important role in this creative work.

The visual element, which is the dramaturgical and visual centre of the performance, creates an atmosphere of rebirth that is both ancient and ethereal, while acting as an equal partner of the human body and movement. The ‘fabric of life’, pulsating through the performers, is a roaring sea, then a sheltering leaf that covers the pure human beings, floats across the stage like a stingray, or whispers in the ears of the characters like a transcendental force. Emese Kasza was co-creator of the scenic design, which merges costume and set. The lighting design was an integral part of the process of transforming the set into the ‘fabric of life’, and was also shaped in the course of a joint creative process with Attila Lenzsér. The technical director of the production was Tamás Vladár, who also contributed as a technical expert in aeronautics.

The conflicts of the myth of the reborn human are also expressed through the original music of the performance. Once again, Bence Vági asked Edina Szirtes to compose the multifaceted soundscape in which the life-overwhelming and life-creating roar emerges from the mythical chaos, while the unconscious pulsations of human memory reveal the prayers of vanished cultures. The music is becoming a living, integral part of the stage production, thanks to the work of sound designer Gábor Terjék.

Paradisum is a pure yet sinister hope for rebirth, looking anxiously into the future. Can it preserve the purity of soul and mind of a human being free from sin? Can it find happiness in the security of the rites of communal existence?