FOGO LENTO
transdisciplinary artistic research
Target audience: + 13 years old | Classification: M6 | Duration: 80 minutes | Capacity: up to 50 people
Imagem: Willian Ferreira
m i c o r r i z a s
Synopsis
"When you look at the forest, it looks back at you.
Under our feet lies a hidden network, an underground conversation taking place right now. If you lean in close to the soil, the leaves, the fungi, and the seeds, you can hear echoes of this dialogue.
It is about you, too."
“Micorrizas" is a participatory and immersive performance that explores the relationship between the individual and the collective by studying the behavior of mycelium and its associations with plants.
An outdoor walk, where singing accompanies the observation of the surrounding environment, leads the audience into an indoor space: an underground world where spectators are embraced by the polyphonic weave of the mycelium.
A participatory performance to dive into the belly of the earth, where the mycelium weaves its networks.
Artistic Credits
• Artistic coordination and performance: Costanza Givone
• Musical composition and performance: Clélia Colonna
• Performance: Jo Da Silva • Set design and image: Svenja Tiger
• Text: Alex Cassal • Lighting: Rui Azevedo • Sound: João Guimarães
• Executive production: Margarida Fragueiro
Production: Fogo Lento
Artistic residencies: CAMPO/Fogo Lento; CRL Central Elétrica; Art'Imagem/Quinta da Caverneira; Cine-teatro de Alcobaça; Convento dos Capuchos de Almada; Biblioteca de Marvila; CEA Moita; Cine-teatro São João de Palmela; Cine-teatro Municipal João Mota de Sesimbra.
An Artemrede co-production with the Municipalities of Alcobaça, Almada, Lisbon, Moita, Palmela, and Sesimbra within the framework of the 2024-25 Artemrede Co-production Program.
Institucional partners:
República Portuguesa - Cultura | Fundo de Fomento Cultural
Description
Keywords: connections, collective, mycelium, polyphony
"Micorrizas" is part of a three-year research and creation project on the relationship between the individual and the collective. The study of mycelium behavior and mutualistic associations is the starting point for an investigation that sees communication and exchange as its greatest strength.
The mycelium, the vegetative apparatus of fungi, weaves a dense network of hyphae underground. As it grows, its body connects to tree roots, creating symbiotic relationships called mycorrhizae. Through them, it transports information and distributes nutrients to plants, based on their availability in the ground.
The mycelium, is capable of making choices without having a centralized structure. It seems to act "intelligently" (from the Latin inter-legere: to choose between), without a brain, without a body, nor a center. Mycelium behavior is very inspiring, both because it reveals a very active underground world and because it helps us think about other types of intelligence and forms of cooperation and communication.
In this project, the involved artists cross the study of fungal biology with artistic practices such as a polyphonic choir and weaving. They developed different practices based on movement, singing, visual arts, and textiles to create a performance that involves the spectators and invites them to an active participation through movement, singing, and the creation of close relationships.
The audience becomes part of a collective where each individual's action has an impact on the whole.
The performance functions as a living organism that embraces the uniqueness of the moment and the group of people present.