- Lecture Performance
Emerging from the ancient earth: destruction, rebirth, and what lies ahead.
Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige are Lebanese-born film directors and artists based in Paris. They regularly participate in international film festivals such as Cannes and Berlinale, and were awarded the Marcel Duchamp Prize in 2017, which recognizes innovative contemporary artists. Through their work, they have consistently addressed themes of recorded history and its narrative construction in Lebanon and the Middle East.
Their latest performance, which premiered in 2024, tells the story of Orthosia, a legendary Roman city unearthed from beneath a Palestinian refugee camp. The ancient city, which vanished after a tsunami in 551 AD, was uncovered when the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in northern Lebanon was destroyed in an internal armed conflict in 2007. It is the most significant archaeological discovery since Pompeii, but excavation work forcibly displaces the refugees yet again. Considering this dilemma, the two artists summon historical records and conversations with archaeologists onto the stage, and bury a time capsule for the future in the strata of the Middle East, where violence and destruction continue.
Profile
Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige
Filmmakers and artists, Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige work with photography, installations, performance, video and film. They question the fabrication of images and representations, the construction of imaginaries and the writing of history. Their award-winning films include “Memory Box” (2021), “ISMYRNA” (2016), “The Lebanese Rocket Society” (2012), “Je Veux Voir” (2008). They received the prestigious Marcel Duchamp Prize in 2017 for their artistic project Unconformities. Joana and Khalil are both very involved in cultural structures in Lebanon such as Correspondaences, Metropolis and Cinémathèque Beirut.
Dates
February 24th [Mon] 15:00 *Talk (after the performance) / *Pair ticket
February 25th [Tue] 17:00 *Pair ticket
Performance times
Approx. 70 min.
Venue
Spiral Hall
3F Spiral, 5-6-23 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0062
Ticket
Single ticket
Adults | 3,000 yen
Students | 2,500 yen
*Booking essential, non-reserved seat
Pair ticket
Adults | 5,000 yen
Students | 4,500 yen
*Booking essential, non-reserved seat
*This ticket may be used to attend two performances with Mei Liu’s “Homesick for Another World,” which will be performed on the same day.
Language
English (with Japanese subtitles)
Accessibility
Japanese subtitles available
Written communication assistance available at reception
Wheelchair-accessible seating available
Credit
A project by Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige
Archaeologist | Hadi Choueri
Research | Maissa Maatouk, Maitre Julien Ghossoub
Cinematography | Talal Khoury, Joe Saade, Khalil Joreige
Video editing | Tina Baz, Cybele Nader
Animation | Laurent Brett
3D Animation | Maissa Maatouk
Sound editing and mixing | Cherif Allam, Rana Eid (Studio DB)
Music | Charbel Haber, The Bunny Tylers
Studio manager | Tara El Khoury Mikhael
Commissioned and produced by Kunstenfestivaldesarts
Coproduction: Points communs – Nouvelle scène nationale de Cergy-Pontoise et du Val d’Oise
Thanks to Galerie In Situ – fabienne leclerc
Performance in Tokyo
Venue Support | Wacoal Art Center
Supported by Embassy of France in Japan / Institut français du Japon, La Fondation Franco-Japonaise Sasakawa
Related program
Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige “ISMYRNA” and more
Commons Tour (Tour A)
Dates | February 23rd [Sun], 24th [Mon]