Panelka

Dasha Podoltseva of Seria__project shared her personal recollection of growing up in Panelka, the prefab high rise social housing in Ukraine that has become a symbol, in bombed out states, of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Dasha addressed the weariness of a protracted war by offering a different, personal narrative of the towers that are the predominant domestic building in Ukraine.

This experiential performance work ran through summer 2022, the audience sitting in theatrical versions of Panelka blocks with puppeteer Gail Borrow and musician Sam Brown operating the central core, a metaphorical heart beat of the shared tower block services. The audience shared video messages to Dasha in Kyiv at the end of the show.

Devised and performed by: Gail Borrow
Engineer: Paul Beadle
Musician: Sam Brown
Artwork: Dasha Podoltseva
Oral testimony: Dasha Podoltseva
Sound: Frank Moon