Is Joy II is an attempt at optimism (perhaps rare in terms of both generation and genre) that is not grounded in illusions and naivety, but builds on real possibilities. It is a (successful) attempt to find joy and imbue the community with it, connecting all the elements of the space, including the audience. To inhabit the entire space with the same ripple shared by the performers, the set and the audience. A ripple that passes between the bodies and objects in the auditorium, expanding to ultimately build a symbolic theatrical totem, made up of discarded pieces of home furniture, the inventory of props and other elements that theatres hide behind the scenes, as well as the hope that it is possible to reach for the heights. The performance is a gesture of counter-passivity and all-embracing construction, in which we, the audience, are involved too. It is a small theatrical rave with its cautious beginning and calm ending, which, however, is only the beginning and a prelude to more!

The performance was created by the master students of the international programme Devised and Object Theatre at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU). The director, Aljoša Lovrić Krapež, graduated in Dramaturgy from the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television in Ljubljana (where he received a Student Prešeren Award) and recently completed his Master’s degree at DAMU with Is Joy II. He is also a member of the Počemučka collective.