Startup Wrapup: Soňa Jakubove

Interview by Lena Megyeri

Soňa, you recently completed your project “Footsteps of Resilience”. Can you guide me through all the events that took place in the frame of the project?

It took place in two Slovakian cities: Trnava and Bratislava, which are very close to each other. The series of events started in Bratislava with Boglárka Börcsök and Andreas Bolm’s performance Figuring Age. Then we held a panel discussion about dance development, which was an attempt to add a wider context about modern dance in our region: Central and Eastern Europe. Part of the programme was also a film screening and a workshop for dance students. We finished the whole project with a dance performance from the Czech Republic, titled Softer Skills.

Did any of your plans change during the project? Did you face any difficulties?

Originally, the whole project was supposed to take place in Trnava, but after consulting with the Aerowaves network, we were able to extend it to our capital city, Bratislava. The main reason was that Figuring Age was too big for Malý Berlin, the cultural centre I work in, or any other space in Trnava, so we had to find a place for it somewhere else. It turned out very well in the end, because some people who saw the performance and were excited to know more, took the 30-minute journey to Trnava to watch Boglárka and Andreas’ movie The Art of Movement as well. So the programmes became nicely connected across the two cities. I consider it a very positive change, because this way the project had a much wider reach, and we were able to bring it closer to the experts in the field of dance as well.

Honestly, in the beginning I didn’t realize how much time the whole project would need. I was supposed to finish my research in May, but I will continue working on it until September. It affected the panel discussion as well: originally, I only wanted to have guests from neighbouring countries, but since I hadn’t finished my research I decided to add a guest from Slovakia to also show the context of my country, and it made the discussion richer. So all the changes were for the better in the end.

In your first interview, you mentioned that contemporary dance is a bit difficult for your audience in Trnava. What reactions did you get from them about the programmes?

We got great feedback. Even people who don’t often come to dance performances came. They said they didn’t know what to expect, but were pleasantly surprised. Boglárka’s piece is somewhere between theatre and dance, and our audience is more used to theatre, so I think it was a good choice. The topics of the piece, ageing and freedom, are topics that many people can identify with. There were different generations in the audience, and the performance was very touching even for young people: some of them were thinking about their own future, some of them were thinking of their grandparents. I was a bit worried, because sometimes Slovaks can be reserved and shy, but many of them stayed after the performance and wanted to talk with Boglárka and Andreas. The artists also seemed very happy to be in Slovakia.

Besides ageing, the other focus of your research was how post-communist countries are dealing with their dance history. What did you find out about the similarities and differences between Slovakia and its neighbouring countries?

This was the topic of the panel discussion, which was titled The development of dance in totalitarianism and after. We invited very interesting guests from Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Ukraine. Some of them were active or studying during the communist era, some of them are researchers in this field. We talked about history, education, society and politics. Each country has its own trajectory that shaped the modern dance scene, but since the historical context of communism is the same, you can find many similarities. For example, in all of those countries, modern dance was considered too experimental and individualistic. More traditional or classical forms were preferred, like ballet or folk dance. It is also common that amateur movements were very strong in these countries, both in theatre and dance. We wouldn’t call them amateurs today, it only meant that they had another profession for their livelihoods. The differences are mostly in the terminology, for example in Hungary modern dance before the second world war was called “the art of the movement”, just like Boglárka’s movie. It’s great we had a chance to have this discussion, because usually when you’re doing research, you don’t have the possibility to make it this broad.

The events took place during the days after the attempted assassination of Slovakian prime minister Robert Fico. Did it have any effect on your project?

I remember very clearly: We had been doing the set up for Figuring Age for a day and a half, everyone was very tired and silent, and then someone read the news that Fico had been shot. Suddenly there were so many emotions. The atmosphere in Slovakia became even stranger, because everyone was scared of what would happen. Many events were cancelled, especially in Bratislava. I wasn’t sure if it would be possible to have our events and whether people would come. Luckily, in the end, I think it didn’t affect the project at all.

What do you think will be the long-term effects of your project? Where do you see it going from here and what are your plans with it for the future?

I will definitely continue with my research and the oral history method. I plan to meet 5–8 people who were active during communism in Slovakia, to talk about their memories. We also recorded the panel discussion, so it may help other researchers in the future; maybe we can even make a podcast out of it. I think that we can catch the stories that might otherwise have been lost or forgotten. Also, one of the researchers that we invited to the panel from Ukraine, Maria Kardash, will come to Malý Berlin for a two-month residency, because her topic of research is very relevant for us. We got to know her thanks to this project.

What is the main lesson that you learned? What advice would you give yourself if you just started?

I would say it’s very important not to be alone in a project like this. I was lucky to have a great team behind me at Malý Berlin, where I have my regular full-time job. Apart from helping me with graphic design, communication and technical support, they also gave me a lot of space to work on this project. Without that, I don’t think it would have been possible to realize a project of this scale.

And advice for myself: when something doesn’t go quite as expected or planned, just trust the process, and it can turn out very well in the end.