Radiant Nights #9: Spells for the skin

Four times a year, Radiant Nights is a space for creation and experimentation that eschews conventions. Centre stage are versatile artists who think beyond the binary and seek out the in-between space. Their work is radical, exciting and surprising. Radiant.

During the ninth edition, - spells for the skin -, several mesmerising performances are on the programme. Magical, artificial and cybernetic realities are brought to life. How can these other realities give us insight in shaping our own historical, sexual and spiritual identity? 

Author Louise Morel introduces the evening with a contrarian addition to contemporary discourse around queer politics. Next, voice and visual artist Lara Dâmaso performs an incantatory voice performance on the expo square. Two world premieres follow. Performance artist Mustaf Ahmeti brings Riddle my Skin, an intense performance in which they transform into a satyr and challenge conceptions around religion and sexuality. And in Future Gore, theatre-makers Mateusz Staniak and Arne Luiting confront us with the paradoxes of 'self' and 'authenticity' in an increasingly artificial-looking world. 

When a performance is viewed as an incantation, and skin as an uninhibited receptor connecting body and mind, it becomes hard to resist the artistic statements of Radiant Nights #9: spells for the skin.