Benjamin Zajc: EROTOMANIA

EROTOMANIA is the sixth performative manifestation by dramaturge and critic Benjamin Zajc, following the performances Chicken is Roasted When the Temperature of the Meat Reaches 74 Degrees Celsius (2018), The Baptism on the Savica (2019), Farewells/Manifesto (2019), 8372 (2022) and Tales of the Coffee Sediment/8372 (2023).

EROTOMANIA continues to test the limits of the artist’s performative structure, this time focussing on the capacities of his own sanity and attempting to answer the question of how honest he actually dares to be at a live event. To what limit of his truths does he dare to go? By taking to the stage, control over the artist’s vulnerability is created and performative actions very quickly become tests of self-exposure, pushing the boundaries of artistic expression and answering the question of how transparent, raw and authentic an artist can be in public. The key is the spectator, who becomes an active participant in this journey, a kind of dance between authenticity and performative personality.

If most of Zajc’s performance actions so far have dealt with issues of war trauma, collective guilt and social guilt (with the exception of Farewell/Manifesto, which is a kind of precursor to EROTOMANIA), this time the artist deals with his own sins, the unfiltered aspects of his being that are structurally linked to the seven deadly sins. The entire event will therefore consist of seven short performances (seven easy pieces), the conception of which will be partly prepared by the eventual audience of the performance – the artist will post on his Instagram profile between October 2023 and April 2024 and ask his followers to select certain elements of the performance (music, actions, interventions in the performance…).

Author and performer Benjamin Zajc
Co-performers: Ema Osolnik, Kaja Judež

Benjamin Zajc is a dramaturge, critic and performer. In 2022 he got his MA in Dramaturgy and Performing Arts at UL AGRFT. His dramaturgical practise is mainly focused puppetry and performance. He has published his reflections on the performing arts in various journals, anthologies and theatre magazines, as well as reviews on various online portals and currently in the daily newspaper Delo. Since 2020 he has been working as a dramaturge at the Ljubljana Puppet Theatre. He is a member of the selection committee of the 17th International Biennial Festival of Contemporary Puppetry Art LUTKE 2024 and an external consultant for the international programme of the 15th edition of the Spectaculo Interesse festival (Czech Republic).