The Prague Quadrennial

The Prague Quadrennial

Prague Quadrennial - International competitive exhibition of scenography and performance design and space - is the largest and most important event of its kind in the world.

June 8 2023 - June 18 2023
The Prague Quadrennial
The Prague Quadrennial is a unique platform for the meeting of theater cultures and artists from around the world, which offers a unique opportunity to exchange experiences, explore new theatrical trends and technical possibilities, and trying out new ways of working in the workshops.

Part of the PQ are traditional exhibition sections of scenography, costumes, stage design and theater architecture schools that enrich the live program in the form of live performances, critical seminars, lectures, discussions, conferences and programs for children. The Prague Quadrennial has been held in the Czech capital since 1967.

Over the decades, PQ evolved into a platform meeting various cultures, giving voice to the less heard artists and researchers in the field of scenography and performance design. Its most notable contribution to the theatre world and the world of art and culture in general is thus the ability to connect, allowing theatre makers to network and initiate unprecedented creative collaborations, push boundaries and enrich what the performance design and space means and could mean in the global shape of the world.

The 15th edition of the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space will present over 250 artworks in ten programme sections. The key themes affecting society on global and local levels will be negotiated in the projects of PQ by artists from more than 100 countries and regions.The theme of the 15th edition of PQ in 2023 is RARE; in the sense of unique and raw realities that artists create. PQ 2023 will present art springing out of ideas, materials, artistic approaches, and design practices that connect to the human level from within your environment, with its genius loci and unique situation.

During the eleven days, the visitors of PQ will have the opportunity to experience around 150 exhibitory projects and installations, 50 performances mainly in the public space, a live exhibition of 35 concepts of performance spaces, 60 of the most inspired publications about scenography issued in the past five years or 40 blocks of expert lectures.

At the Holešovice Market

The historically most significant programme sections of PQ – Exhibition of Countries and Regions (ECR) and the Student Exhibition (SE) – will take place on the grounds of the Holešovice Market for the first time. All in all, the exhibitions will show about 100 installations by creative teams from 65 countries/regions of the whole world, curated by representatives of the participating countries/regions.

Theatre hall Jatka78 will be the venue for the presentation block PQ Talks, which will open the themes of ecoscenography or the sustainability in production processes, it will raise broader questions about costume on and outside the stage, use of technology and new creative approaches, pedagogy, identity in scenography and more.
 
Prague Quadrennial is preparing a programme section for the youngest visitors as well: PQ Kids, which will be co-produced by a creative platform Máš umělecké střevo?. A series of workshops in hall 27 will introduce various techniques and approaches to the art of scenography to children. A synthesis of performance and new technologies via multimedia setting and a series of technical workshops will be delivered by the 36Q° project, co-created with the Arts&Digital Lab – H40 collective.

At the Trade Fair Palace

The Trade Fair Palace building of the National Gallery Prague will be a venue for the Performance Space Exhibition and Fragments II. The former is focused on theatre architecture from the perspective of unconventional places conceived for assembly, sharing and artistic expression. It accentuates the transition from the locally assigned theatre architecture to more vivid and performative concepts of performance space.

At DAMU

The educational platform of Prague Quadrennial will be hosted by the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Thirty educational and result-driven workshops will comprise the project PQ Studio, along with student performances situated in the DISK theatre and in the streets of Prague.

In the streets of Prague

PQ Performance is a series of site-adaptive performances, which will give new meanings and life to iconic and more ordinary locations of Prague. Out of almost three hundred applications, the international team of PQ selected 20 performances by artists from as far as Chile, Mexico or Brasil.

Anywhere - with the Festival Pass

Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space launched the pre-sale of Festival Passes, releasing a detailed programme for this year’s edition. The price for the full experience 11-day Festival Pass is 2800 CZK / 1800 CZK (student price). PQ offers 1- and 3-day Festival Passes as well, all granting you access to all the spaces of the festival. 1-day Exhibition Tickets are available as well, for those interested in visiting just the main exhibition spaces in the Holešovice Market and the Trade Fair Palace of the National Gallery Prague.

The Golden Triga Award of the 15th Prague Quadrennial

On Tuesday 13 June, the PQ of Performance Design and Space 2023 presented the exhibitions and projects awarded by the PQ Jury at its 15th edition. The prestigious Golden Triga, given at every edition to one selected installation within the Exhibition of Countries and Regions and the Student Exhibition, was awarded to Cyprus and their installation Spectators in a Ghost City. It is a minimalistic exhibit that aims to mediate conflict and trauma of Famagusta, abandoned and fenced off for forty-six years, as a result of the Turkish military invasion. The awards travel to numerous continents of the world, to Europe, Asia and to both North and South Americas.

Come and see the award-winning works!

The exhibition spaces will be open until midnight on Friday, 16 June, both in the Holešovice Market and the National Gallery. The programme is live with performances in the places of Prague, talks, live events and music shows until 18 June.
 

Address

Prague Market Hall (Pražská tržnice)
Holešovice