«Queer Quark», 2026
Multidisciplinary theatre performance, spoken word, aerial choreography, live piano music, video projection, 65 min.
Directed and written by Evgeniya Rudyuk
The story is based on the life experience of Evgeniya Rudyuk, the migrant artist, who was forced to flee her homeland and start her life anew, from scratch, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and another Russian artist, widely renowned in Amsterdam and around the world - Pavel Kushnir. The production explores the split identity of a migrant living between homeland and exile, guilt and freedom, survival and creation.
The title “Queer Quark” brings together two concepts that challenge fixed definitions. In physics, a Quark is a fundamental particle whose properties cannot be observed directly and exist only in relation to other particles; it never appears alone, but always in connected states. “Queer” similarly describes an identity that resists binary logic, stable categorization, and normative frameworks.
In the performance, the migrant artist is understood as a “queer quark”: a being in constant superposition, simultaneously belonging to multiple cultures, languages, genders, and political realities. The title alludes to both quantum theory and queer thought to name a state of existence that is unstable yet real, fractured yet whole — a form of identity that does not seek resolution, but insists on the right to exist in complexity. And this should not lead to cultural and social isolation.
This rich metaphor from physics describes how the life of the artist Evgeniya Rudyuk changed after the death of pianist, writer and activist Pavel Kushnir.
Performance contains drama text, classical live music, aerial choreography and video installation.Using metaphors from quantum physics — duality, superposition, and entanglement — the performance combines the documentary sources and autofiction text by Evgeniya Rudyuk.
Together, these elements combine to form an experimental theatre narrative, is looking for an answer to which truth is stronger - documentary or imaginary one?
Artistic production group:
Director and playwright – Evgeniya Rudyuk
Actress – Natalia Perel
Piano performer – Maria Nemtsova
Aerial choreography – Natasha Smyslova
Stage choreography – Polina Mirovskaya, Daria Titova
Visual design, promotion and social media – Polina Ertel
Video design – Lidia Sinelnik
Set and light design – Alkmini Damianakou
Costume design – Puk lindeman, Anna Atman
Composers – Meredith Monk, Kate Moore, Serge Rachmaninoff
Producion assistance – Marina Yemets
Photo and video – Roman Ermolaev
Rigging – Camin Arricau Cassiau
With the support of and with special thanks to: WeExist!, Wilhelmina E. Jansen Fonds, Admiraal van Kinsbergenfonds, het Cultuurfonds, Voordekunst, Olga Shkrygunova, Roma Liberov, Stichting MUSIC BRIDGES, Prometheus
