Be Echo of Mine

Be Echo of Mine was a contemporary circus work created through improvisation. It drew inspiration from the ancient Greek myth of Narcissus and Echo, from the broader theme of narcissism and Huizingas ideas of the poetry:

“The beings of poetry wear a different physiognomy than in ordinary life, and they are bound to one another by ties other than logic. Poetry lies beyond the real, on that more primitive side where child, animal, savage, and seer belong, in the world of dream, wonder, ecstasy, and laughter. Lyric is a mystical speculation, the language of oracle and magic, a world in which one must move free from the bonds of logic.” – Johan Huizinga, Homo Ludens

The improvisation-based working method centered on the performers’ bodies and on the idea that each body produces a unique movement language: an interpretation of the subject matter shaped by one’s own physicality and personal starting points. The performers explored how their own movement resonates in another performer’s body, and how another’s movement, in turn, inspires their own. The moment formed on stage generates a shared world between the performers, governed by the internal logic of the piece and unique in every performance. The work is grounded in the idea of mirror neurons, the human inclination to echo what we perceive around us, and, conversely, our capacity to choose differently.

The piece also questioned the boundaries of the circus as an art form. If a performer is trained as a circus artist but does not present any circus tricks on stage, can the work still be defined as contemporary circus?

The piece was part of Minna Tikkanen’s artistic thesis in the Circus Artist–Pedagogue program at the Turku Arts Academy. The written thesis, Circus Artist in the World of Poetry, further expanded on this working methodology.

Director – Choreographer: Minna Tikkanen

Performers: Hermanni Ahomies, Mikko Aumala, Milla Länsiö, Tea Taipale and Minna Tikkanen

Light designer: Tuomas Vainionpää

Sound composer: Mikko Aumala

Premiere: 24/05/2024 Sigyn, Turku Arts Academy