Europadorp / Europadorf

Exactly 20 years ago, on the border between Germany and the Netherlands, history was written. In a party tent with long tables full of beer and soft drinks, the mayors of the border municipalities signed an exceptional decree of intent: the development of a new village on the border. A village that is not bound to one nationality. With the unification of Europe, a common currency and parliament, there are no obstacles anymore for the border village. A village of possibilities. A statement for European integration and unification. “A borderless village on the border”.

In the documentary performance Europadorp / Europadorf we inquire why this village never was build. Who would have lived there? How would it look like? And is it still possible to build village Europe?

In this multidisciplinary performance, we tell a story through scale models and augmented reality. The visible presence of technology; trackers, cameras, and cables, introduces a valuable vulnerability. It contributes to the live tension on stage. Technology, performance, music and story function as equal parts in the performance’s anatomy.

Credits:

Hands of interviewees holding miniature houses in a video shown in AR above a model where a performer works with these same miniature houses.

Newspaper clippings float in augmented reality above a miniature desk.

A scene takes place at a miniature gas station. The camera then turns to the provincial road on the right (AR)..

..with the red eyes of a wind farm (AR) behind it.

From digital noise (AR), the hand of a performer begins to build a miniature world, house by house.

The border (AR) runs through a miniature model of the border area.

Plans for a new village to be built appear in AR on top of our cardboard model.

An performer walks through a virtual dreamscape. On stage there is nothing but the performer. But his movement is motion tracked and shown on screen.