This is my truth, tell me yours

You can listen to Jasna Jasna Žmak in dialog with Maja Pelević, Olga Dimitrijević and moderated by Teja Reba that will follow the performance of the authors of  “World without Women” (“Svet bez žena”)  in Old Power Station - Elektro Ljubljana on Thursday, 5. 10. at 20.00. 

“this is my truth, tell me yours” is a solo project by the dramaturg and writer Jasna Jasna Žmak, in which she explores her relationship with the artistic field, questioning the responsibilities and the anxieties that the role of the contemporary artist implies. Leaning on her personal experience from 2011, when she started suffering from tinnitus and hyperacusis after firing a theater gun during the performance “MandićMachine” (MandićStroj), directed by Bojan Jablanovec and performed by Marko Mandić, in this piece Žmak creates her own version of a ŽmakMachine, and explores the ways in which art forms the reality we are living in. Although seemingly not connected, the themes of tinnitus and patriarchy become the central motif of this work that operates at the intersection between stand-up comedy and lecture performance. Appearing on stage in the role of the performer for the first time, Žmak deals with questions of truthfulness and representation, participation and responsibility, guiding us through her dramaturgical and sexual experiences, asking herself and the audience questions about the importance and the meaning of artistic production in the era of wild capitalism.

“The title of the piece is “this is my truth tell me yours” which is actually a quote of a quote, but the piece itself doesn’t deal with these quotes, it’s more about some of my own “truths”. I have been working as a writer and a dramaturg for almost 15 years, but lately I have been thinking about wanting to do something else, because I think art is really fucked and because art really fucked me up. But then I made this piece about how art fucked me up, and I actually realised it’s more of a love-hate relationship between me and art. And I realized I actually often really like art. (Although it also gets on my nerves quite often.) Some other topics that I explore in this piece are female orgasm, male masturbation, artistic responsibility and buzzing in the ears. I also mention Konstrakta, Jan Fabre, Oliver Frljić, Xanax, SPID and Jesus. In short, I would be glad if you would come to the show.” Jasna Jasna Žmak

Tickets reservation via rezervacije@cityofwomen.org, tickets sales at the venue.  

Author and dramaturg: Jasna Žmak; performer; Jasna Jasna Žmak; light designer: Anton Modrušan; support in movement creation: Ana Kreitmeyer; producers: Romana Brajša, Špela Trošt (Via Negativa), Barbara Zonta (City of Women); co-production: Center for Drama Art (Zagreb), Via Negativa (Ljubljana),  City of Women (Ljubljana); partners: KunstTeatar (Zagreb), VoxFemineae festival (Zagreb), Zavod En-Knap Ljubljana; co-funded by: Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, the Zagreb City Office for Culture, International Relations and Civil Society, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia and Municipality of Ljubljana. 

This project was developed during PARL – Performance Art Research Ljubljana 2022.