14th INTERNATIONAL THEATRE FESTIVAL RETROPERSPEKTWY: IN FORM
August 21 - 31, 2025
The International Theatre Festival Retroperspektywy is a unique celebration of the performing arts, combining theatre, dance, music, interdisciplinary activities and social reflection, organised by CHOREA Theatre in Łódź. Retroperspektywy for years has brought together artists from all over the world, focusing on a genuine dialogue between cultures, generations and art disciplines.
The motto for this year's edition - “IN FORM” - is a seemingly simple phrase, which in the context of our festival takes on a multi-layered meaning. It is a question about the condition of artists, art and society. It is a closer look at the body and spirit in action - both on and off stage. It is also a reflection on form as a carrier of content - how structure affects the message, how the boundaries of the medium are experimented with.
“IN FORM” is not just a theme - it is a challenge to creators and audiences: are we still in shape? What does it mean to be in shape, in form today - in a world of over-stimulation, tension and transformation?
THEATRE
This year's festival theatre performances explore form as a tool of expression and deconstruction. We will see both classical structures filtered through contemporary sensibilities and experimental narrative forms which are breaking stage conventions. Artists from different countries answer the question: what form does theatre take today, in the face of crisis, social changes and technological revolution?
DANCE
Dance at this year's Retroperspektywy becomes the language of the body in its full condition - physical and emotional. “IN FORM” is a story about pushing the limits of endurance, about the choreography of everyday life, about the relationship between the form of the body and the content it carries. The dancers explore the theme of corporeality as a space for recording the experiences and trauma, but also joy, rhythm and community.
MUSIC
Music is the living organism of Retroperspektywy - pulsating with the rhythm of form and content. This year we will hear projects which combine music with movement, words and space - from instrumental concerts to performative sound sets. Composers, instrumentalists, singers and vocalists explore form as a field of experimentation. “IN FORM” is also a question about the structure of composition, the limits of genre and sound that speaks in new ways.
KIDS & YOUTH
A programme for younger viewers and beginner artists - it is a space for exploring form as a tool for self-expression. Through workshops, performances and artistic activities, children and young people learn to understand and create the world through art. “IN FORM” is not only a game with form for them, but also the first encounter with the question: what form does my voice and my body have, and how and where can I use them?
WORKSHOPS & RESIDENCY
This is the heart of Retroperspektywy - a place of creative fermentation, processes, meetings and rehearsals. This year, the workshop formula emphasises the theme “IN FORM” even more strongly - the workshops and residency leaders are invited to search for a common understanding of form and action, a form of expression, a form of being together. Residents and participants can develop new projects and test forms that are just being born - boldly, experimentally, and creatively.
EXHIBITION & INSTALLATION
Visual forms complete the festival programme, posing questions about the limits of perception and interaction with works of art. “IN FORM” is also a reflection on the form of presentation - how do we relate and tell stories about the world today through image, space, and objects? We invite you to experience installations that speak the language of space and matter, provoking you to immerse yourself in form - literally.
MEETINGS & DISCUSSIONS
With debates and discussions with the artists, and reflective panel meetings, Retroperspektywy is opening up a space for in-depth conversations about form as a tool but also as a trap. “IN FORM” is also a question about the form of dialogue - how do we talk about art today? Participants of the meetings have the chance to exchange experiences, views and reflections - directly, honestly, and without pretence.
SUMMER VIBE
Retroperspektywy is not just theatre - it's also an atmosphere. Summer at CHOREA Theatre, in the Art Factory in Łodź and in Fuzja - Łódź - is about open-air concerts, a relaxation zone, shared meals and evening parties. Here, the motto “IN FORM” communicates a form of being together, a form of relaxation, a form of attentiveness. For the participants, it is a space to catch their breaths - and get in touch with themselves and others, in the rhythm of the summer.
