THE RED CHAIR
A performance created, devised and performed by Jelena Prljevic in collaboration with Margarita Blush and Braley Degenhardt
Installation/Set Designer: Jelena Prljevic
Music and Sound: Slobodan Jukic Sloxxx
Performance Coach: Margarita Blush
Photos by Ting Zhou
Artspace, New Haven, CT
Dixon Place, NYC
“Using room-size paper installation, live performance, shadow imagery, projected animation, and sound, The Red Chair accentuates contradictory ideas of freedom and confinement from a female perspective. The work focuses on female courage and discovery of an independent voice to explore complexities in women’s relationships and the ways they inform one’s chosen path. Paper is used as the primary material and conceptual tool because of its transformative and resilient qualities. The nonverbal movement performance is enveloped in light and shadows and follows a female character as she moves from entrapment to freedom, a journey that requires continuous female support.”
My costume design concept supports the main idea around entrapment and freedom. The costumes enable female characters to explore the movement, giving them the opportunity to examine the concepts of freedom. The characters are connected through the same ‘color’ and shape of their dresses. Together, they create unity. This repetition adds to the ritualistic aspect to the performance. Macramé that is used to add texture to the costumes - symbolizes entrapment and obstacles that the female characters encounter on their journey, but, at the same time, reinforces the female vigilance that persists through hand-craft.