Queendom

"When it comes to the representation of women and female roles, Hungarian theater seldom reflects on the tradition of masculine, patriarchal representation, nor on how the construing and normative power of the male gaze appears through it. This is exactly the theme of Veronika Szabó’s performance, Queendom. We see a line-up of various female images, beauty ideals and behaviour patterns taken from classic paintings, magazines, films, advertisements, porn and children’s movies, that is, from the complete visual (and non-visual) world that surrounds us. They are displayed by eight female performers, only to be disassembled soon after with lots of humour. The performance evokes familiar stereotypes, but at the same time it also indicates their subtleties and diversity. Behind the provocatively sexy, erotic, quietly romantic, elegant, warrior-like and hysterical female figures stand the performers: eight charmingly powerful female artistes. The question is: Can we change or even radically alter the male gaze that fundamentally determines our very culture? This is what Queendom asks and at the same time strives for." (Anikó Varga, curator)

“Veronika Szabó, a member of the youngest generation of Hungarian directors, deals with the methodology of collaborative devising and leaves behind the dictatorial toolbox of the director’s theatre. She came into the limelight with a work which demonstrated the individuality of her artistic voice and highlighted gender issues., which are rarely a theme in the Hungarian theatre. Queendom (2017), which was produced by an international group of artists, creates a democratic atmosphere. Built upon scenes (which often test the limits) involving seven women, it is performed mostly without words, and with background music. It puts the human body on show bravely and openly. Influenced by Jérôme Bel, it is marked by feminism, eroticism and strong emotional effects. It does not deal directly with the problem of sexual harassment, but, rather, it considers the way we see the female body. The performance confronts female audience members with their expectations towards their own female roles; their attitude to the normative body-image; the notion of their own beauty; and whether they are able to review the expectations unconsciously working deep within themselves." (Noémi Herczog)

"Queendom is the absolute No. 1 of theatre shows that I have recently seen. What we see is Veronika Szabo and her seven co-creators’ interpretation of watching, voyeurism, conforming to the audience’s, and within that to the male gaze, and how all this could result in a kind of roleplay and a distortion of women’s personalities. Queendom is a hit in the ‘Arccal a Halnak’ programme. It understands and uses the tools of contemporary performance and the ‘in your face’ theatre very well, and effectively challenges the comfort zone of the audience." (Zsofia Palffy)

"Queendom presents standard female roles but immediately puts them in quotation marks using brilliant gestures and jokes. As a matter of fact, it is the same in real life: we often show the cloven hoof, because we are not virgins, sculptures, bitches, queens or birth canals. We are ourselves, but it is hard to find ourselves amongst the roles offered. They say that women and especially feminist women have a bad sense of humour. But Veronika Szabo’s Queendom is a refreshing contradiction to this stereotype." (Panni Puskas)