Concert “Di Strauss Technique” | Bulgaria
Creator: Ivo Dimchev
Direction, music, choreography, stage design, text: Ivo Dimchev
Lighting, sound design: Ivo Dimichev
Cast: Ivo Dimchev
Premiere: May 25, 2025
Date: August 29, 2026 | Saturday
Time: 8 pm
Place: Glass Hall, Art Factory in Łódź, 3 Tymienieckiego Street
Tickets: 25 PLN - industry | 40 PLN - early bird | 50 PLN - reduced | 70 PLN - regular
Early bird tickets: on sale from June 23, 2026 until July 7, 2026 or until they are sold out | via biletomat.pl portal | online payment
Regular and reduced tickets: on sale from July 8, 2026 until they are sold out | via biletomat.pl portal | online payment
Industry tickets: for cultural workers, on sale one hour before the selected event, at the Festival Office | cash or contactless card payment | booking: from June 23, 2026, by mail:biuro@retroperspektywy.com
Duration: 75 minutes
Age restrictions: 18 +
Language: English
Important information: Audience members are asked to wear comfortable clothes and shoes, as the concert is intended for a dancing audience
Content warning: Vulgar language, adult content, and alcohol will be served to the audience during the concert
DESCRIPTION OF THE CONCERT
“Di/Strauss Technique” is a participatory musical and dance course, and a dynamic musical workout designed to elevate the audience’s spirit, perception, physical awareness, vocal courage, physical freedom, and desire.
Drawing inspiration from the music of Johann Strauss II - the “King of the Waltz”, Ivo Dimchev composes 10 healing songs intended to enchant different parts of the body - a heartfelt tribute to queerness, and creates playful choreographies that address the psycho-physical wellbeing of the contemporary citizen.
Themes such as sexual autonomy, emotional resilience, financial anxiety, self-love, and divine absurdity are explored through lyrics, movement, and interaction. The show unfolds as a communal ritual of joy and irreverence, blending queer humor with operetta kitsch and camp catharsis.
The audience becomes an active participant in this musical workout, spreading out into the space and collectively rehearsing movement sequences, guided by the artist and his team. With cotton bags filled with ribbons, fans, pompoms, and more, each spectator becomes a participant - singing, moving, laughing, confessing, and reclaiming their voice.
“A choir of frivolity. A love letter to all human things. Di/Strauss yourself, but let's do it together!!!”
INFORMATION ABOUT THE ARTIST
Ivo Dimchev - is a theatre maker, choreographer, visual artist, singer, songwriter, and queer activist from Bulgaria. His work is an extreme and colourful mix of performance art, dance, theater, music, painting, and photography. He is the author of more than 40 stage performances and has received numerous international awards for dance and theatre. Most of his stage performances are included in his book “Stage Works 2002-2016”. He has also written more than 100 original songs all included in his “Songbook”. His work has been presented throughout Europe, South and North America, and Asia. Since November 2023 Ivo Dimchev has been an artist in residence at La Mama theatre in New York, where he created and premiered his last stage works “Hell/Top 40” and “METCH”. During the Covid pandemic Dimchev performed more than 400 private concerts in people’s homes in Bulgaria, Istanbul, New York, and Los Angeles. “The New Yorker” covered these performances in a profile on Dimchev titled “The Extravagant Exuberance of Ivo Dimchev”. Dimchev is the founder and director of Bulgaria’s Humarts Foundation. In 2009, after doing his master’s studies on performing arts at Dasarts Academy in Amsterdam, he opened Volksroom in Brussels, a performance space that presents young international artists. In 2014, he opened MOZEI in Sofia, Bulgaria, as an independent space for presenting contemporary art and music. In addition to his artistic work, Dimchev gives master classes at the National Theater Academy (Budapest), the Royal Dance Conservatoire of Belgium (Antwerp), Hochschule der Künste (Bern), Amsterdam University of the Arts, and DanceWeb (Vienna), among others.
AWARDS
- 2023 1st Prize at “Cherry on the Top of the Cake”, TV Reality Show, Bulgaria
- 2023 Best Music Video for “Raina Kabaivanska” - VIP Awards, Sofia
- 2016 IKAR Award for best Bulgarian contemporary performance for “Operville” - experimental opera by Ivo Dimchev
- 2014 The Magnolia Award - Award of the City of Szczecin to the author and performer of “P Project” - Ivo Dimchev, for political and social incorrectness and questioning personal and cultural conditions
- 2014 “X-on” nominated for best performance of the year in Oslo by Natt-Dag
- 2013 Iron Medal for Contemporary Art “Vencislav Zankov” for 2013, Sofia, Bulgaria
- 2013 “P Project” selected as one of 10 best theatre performances produced in all German speaking countries for 2012 by Virtuellen Nachtkritik-Theatertreffen 2013
- 2011 “Lili Handel” at LaMama nominated for Bessie Award in New York for best performance of the year
- 2011 “We.art.dog.come” announced as one of the 5 most recommended performances for the season 2011/2012 by Theatermaker Magazin - Holland
- 2010 “Som Faves” announced as the best performance in Holland for season 2009/2010 by Theatremaker Magazin
- 2010 “Som Faves” selected for one of the 10 Best performances in Belgium by the jury of Het Theter Festival
- 2008 The Award of the French Critics for best performance of the year for “Lili Handel”
- 2008 The Award of the Jury, the most original research of the segment of theatrical language for “Enjoy July” at INFANT festival, Novi Sad
- 2007 Award for the best dance theatre production for the trilogy “2 solos 1 duet”, “Thank you”, “The R” and “Golden duet”, SZASZSZ - 13th Alternative Theatre Festival - Hungary
- 2007 Award for best Hungarian female performer of the year for Andrea Ladany in “Thank you”
- 2007 “Thank you” nomination for Laban Prize for best performance
- 2005 The Award of the International Jury of the Critics for Best Actor in “Lili Handel” at the MASK Festival-Szeged, Hungary
- 2005 The Award of the Jury and The Award of the audience at the National competition for contemporary choreography “Margarita Arnaudova” for the performance “Ha-ha, or souls stretching exercises” with Arabesk Dance Company
