hold me tight / Artūrs Čukurs

HOLD ME TIGHT

a poem for objects and the force of gravity

we often truly see things only when our relationship with them breaks down. a burnt-out light bulb, a smashed smartphone screen or a broken heel makes us realize how much we rely on the things around us and remind us of our interdependence. when a friendship ends, a long-lasting relationship breaks down or we lose a relative or a loved one, we realize something similar: a breakup enables us to see what’s lost and gain a new appreciation for it.

“hold me tight” is a fragment of a memory landscape, traced by experiences.

“hold me tight” is a personal story about an old heartbreak and a long farewell, about coming to new terms with the world and finding different ways to relate to it again.

“hold me tight” is a dedication to the memories we carry with us.

“hold me tight” is forgiveness.

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director, performer: Artūrs Čukurs
dramaturge: Sodja Zupanc Lotker
choreographer: Alise Madara Bokaldere
scenographers: Marta Madara Grantiņa, Beate Poikāne
sound artist: Alberts Levics
visual identity: Aleksejs Beļeckis
lights: d'n'a

duration: 60 minutes
producer: Ģertrūdes ielas teātris
premiere: 15/02/2024

created with the financial support of the State Culture Capital Foundation.

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"The performance is a collective dedication to a very personal memory of the day when my father died. That day changed my life, leaving imprints that have had a great gravitational force on my subsequent experiences – they have shaped me and my relationship with the world around me. HOLD ME TIGHT is a solo performance only relatively – besides me, it also involves a lot of objects, whose agency we have placed at the center of the performance. The objects are active participants, inviting the audience to see ourselves as the sum of things, made up of the people, things and landscapes we encounter, the events we experience and the different textures, colours, sounds and moods we live in and carry with us."

ARTŪRS ČUKURS