one square foot
Kaimakli Greek Site pictures
Turkish Sector of Kaimakli pictures
ONE SQUARE FOOT: A movement in seven movements
ECHO-ARTS Living Arts Centre, in collaboration with other creative artists from Cyprus on both sides of the divide - and from Theatre Alibi UK - welcome you to our inter communal, inter disciplinary performance piece. The performance draws on image and metaphor, as well as fragments of autobiographical narrative, and focuses on the old Cyprus Government Railway which, between 1901 and 1951, ran across the whole island of Cyprus connecting Morfou (Guzelyurt) in the west with Famagusta in the east, as well as many places in between. In Nicosia, it both linked and divided the predominantly Turkish and the predominantly Greek communities within the distinct of Kaimakli, and as part of their research for the performance, the artists have spoken with many Turkish and Greek Cypriots now separated on either side of the dividing line, about their memories of the railway, childhood and living in a mixed community, before the division. They would like to thank these people, and all of the people they have met in both Kucuk Kaimakli/Omorfita and Kaimakli who have unfailingly met them with gentleness, spirit and good humor, and shared their memories with them. Two site specific events took place which formed part of the research for this performance. Both events took the shape of a walk ending near the buffer zone. During the walks small events and actions took place including the marking of a square foot of earth on either side of the divide. Each of these square feet - which its historical, personal, social and cultural layers - marked the site which acted as a source and resource for creating our performance. In the performance itself, we will mark a third square foot, imaginatively if not literally in the buffer zone to which access is not permitted. This square foot metaphorically represents a space between the two sides and the marking of it, the intention of looking towards ways of understanding, healing and forgiveness for the sake of the present and the future.
participant artists
- Arianna Economou (movement and storyteller)
- Dorinda Hulton (movement and storyteller)
- Peter Hulton (video artist and documentor)
- Serhat Selisik (sculptor and installation artist)
- Ilker Kaptanoglu (musician - storyteller
- Larkos Larkou (sound design & composition)
- Horst Weierstall (installation/visual artist and documentor)
project direction
- production direction
- Arianna Economou & Dorinda Hulton
- technical director
- Yiangos Hadjiyiannis
- stage management
- Annita Michaelides
- lighting
- Andreas Markitanis
- sound
- Achilleas Tomasides
production management
- administration
- Argyro Toumazou
project direction
- production and overview
- ECHO ARTS Living Arts Centre
- interviewees
- Kostas Economides, Katina Charalambidou, Maroulla Georgio Siakalli, Ozden Selenge, Emir Kaynak, Birsem Onge
- children on video
- Ianthi and Christos Economou, Reshat and Oz Kaptanoglu
- participants
- 'EPILOGI' Children's Choir, Conductor Angelina Nicolaidou Spanou
- special thanks to
- Can Sarvan, Julia Astraiou, George Kanjellaris, Ruth Keshishian, Nilgun Guney, Demetris Neokleous (EKATE)