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Lumen

From the 5th to the 7th of October 2018, Motionhouse transformed a disused dock on the Bega River in Timișoara, Romania into the stage for a spectacular large-scale outdoor show, as part of the cultural programme in the lead-up to the TM2021 European Capital of Culture celebrations taking place there in 2021. Lumen marked the beginning of the celebrations.

Lumen was part of BEGA, a principal project of Timisoara European Capital of Culture 2021.

Check out some of the performance highlights here:

Created and directed by Kevin Finnan MBE, Artistic Director of Motionhouse, Lumen celebrated the people of Timișoara, who shine as the constant light of the city during the flux in the country’s recent history, reflecting the theme of the celebrations, ‘Shine your light’.

We are renowned for our work in unusual non-theatre spaces and Lumen saw us work with local choirs and community groups to bring to life the dock. A giant aerial spectacle of boats, flying bicycles, construction workers and a flying room, all suspended from cranes, were just some of the thrilling elements that wowed the audience. This, combined with incredible digital projections by our long-term collaborator Logela, helped us to tell the story of the city over recent years – a poignant celebration for the city’s residents.

More than 23,500 people watched the show over 3 nights.

To discover more about the process of creating Lumen check out our Tales of Timisoara blog series.

“I am absolutely delighted to have been invited to this fascinating place to create Lumen. I want to celebrate the incredible people who live in this city and to make a story that captures their place within the history of Timișoara. Lumen is about the city and for the city and I hope that it will touch and move the local people who see it, helping to reinforce their pride and ownership of their city. By its form it will be spectacular, but I want it to be engaging and meaningful too.”

KEVIN FINNAN

Lumen: Production Gallery

Lumen Rehearsal Gallery

Lumen 'Making of' Gallery

Tales of Timisoara Video Series

Go behind the scenes of our performance of Lumen in October by getting to grips with the harnesses our dancers worked with in Romania, hearing Artistic Director Kevin Finnan discussing the themes and inspirations, and seeing work on the projections that interact with our dancers movements.