There is no beginning and no end… no end… what is seen… seen.. Is beyond… beyond… beyond… what is seen….. no beginning… and no end…
Reflections.vol 2 is a choreographic work that explores oscillation as both a physical and metaphysical phenomenon—a continual movement between states, a rhythm of tension and release. Oscillation, as a periodic wave, suggests not only repetition but also transformation: a passage through the in-between, the liminal, the moment before return.
The notion of the “middle” or “in-between” has long been central to my practice. What unfolds within that space of transition? As Deleuze and Guattari write in A Thousand Plateaus: “The middle is by no means an average; on the contrary, it is where things pick up speed… a stream without beginning or end that undermines its banks and picks up speed in the middle.” It is precisely in this stream that Reflections.vol 2 positions itself.
The research underpinning this work began in 2022 within the long-term project Practices for Altered States, which investigates Pendulation—a physical practice grounded in oscillatory movement: two steps forward, one step back. Over approximately one kilometer, with fixed gaze, synchronized breath, and measured rhythm, the practice induces a shift in perception and embodiment, a meditative encounter with duration and distance.
In its choreographic form, the work extends these explorations through Euclidean rhythm and spatial geometry, tracing lines that both connect and divide, forming territories of motion and thought. It reflects on inner states—the ongoing search to position the self in relation to the other—and gestures toward movements of deterritorialisation, moments where meaning slips, and new forms of relation emerge.
This iteration was presented at the Bulgarian-Soviet Friendship Monument in Varna, a monumental relic of socialist ideology. Once a celebration of unity between Bulgaria and the Soviet Union, the structure now stands as a site of ambivalence—a contested landmark burdened with historical complexity. Performing within this charged space activated a dialogue between body and architecture, past and present, personal and political. The oscillatory movement of the performers mirrored the monument’s paradoxical presence: between remembrance and forgetting, permanence and decay.
Ultimately, Reflections.vol 2 reflects on the human condition—individual and collective—caught in the cycles of capitalism, repetition, and resistance. We move as small machines within larger systems, entangled in networks of production, desire, and control. The choreography becomes a question of relation: how do these smaller mechanisms—bodies, gestures, affects—converse with the greater abstract machines of war, love, revolution? And where, within this oscillation, might we locate the possibility of stillness or change?
The work’s structure accommodates a flexible number of performers—never fewer than two—embracing an ethos of inclusivity over limitation. In this iteration, four performers engage within a public space, their presence dialoguing with the surrounding historical monuments and the layered narratives these sites evoke.
Workshop propositions based on the concept:
In public space (all levels):
Practice: Pendulation, Practices for Altered States
In a dance studio (dancers/performers):
Theory: Readings and discussion
Practice Pendulation in rhythm, Practices for Altered States
Practice: Instant composition based on the choreographic work
Artistic team: AUATOR and CHOREOGRAPHER Iskra Prodanova | PERFORMERS Emilia Radicheva, Emilia Toncheva, Maga Arna, Sofia Hristova | SOUND Victor Prodanov in collaboration with Tsvetan Momchilov | LIGHT DESIGN Hristina Ivanova | COSTUMES Iskra Prodanova, produced by KOTITO
Co-producers:
Produced by: PERFORMANCE ROOM
Funding and support:
Financially supported by: National Culture Fund of the Republic of Bulgaria, Creative Projects Program
Duration: 45 min.
Premiere 2025′
