At the time when Freak shows were at its greatest glory, it was the only possible refuge for those personalities that society had rejected and refused for fear of unknown and different. Exhibiting those who had nowhere to go was a powerful source of income for their owner, i.e. impresario.

There were thousands of people, seeking this kind of entertainment, queuing in front of the panoptical coffers, waiting to be amused and shocked by other human sufferings. Women turned away from human anomalies in disgust, children covered their eyes with horror, and men scornfully looked at the creatures that hardly deserved to be called humans. Humiliated creatures without any hopes for dreams or a different fate were often the ones who wanted a chance to live a normal life and sometimes they were even more normal than people looking back at them with astonished eyes. In many cases, none of us would like to be in their skin and experience their sufferings. Despite this fact they were proud and courageous, loving, and filled with dreams about their future that would never come.

But what if the glorious show starts to lack the attractivity and wandering to distant locations brings fewer profits and more uninterested audience? What if the performer is no longer the subject of profitable business, becomes a burden, and needs to be ridden of?

In what situations does the human soul lose value to another person and when does one retain dignity and generosity without a sign of cynicism or resentment, or a sense of injustice towards the cruel surroundings?
 

"Once again, the Prague spectator has the opportunity to see a work that he/she will not forget. It is bitter as well as intoxicating. It will not let you breathe, it will entertain even those who would like to see only its circus dramaturgical line. Magic tricks do not match those commonly used in circuses. Here, they usually move them up."

"Enter the world of curiosities and peculiarities. You will almost touch an elephant man, a snake woman, or Siamese twins. There will be real spells of magicians waiting just for you. You will see what you have never seen before, a singing head, a living doll, and other rarities. It will pay off because you will leave Lenka Vagnerová's Panoptikum with goosebumps. "

"It invites the audience to a mystical, decadent, very visually compact freak show, above which the magical theatrical dust of something ancient and magical hovers."

"In its genre, another event of the season has arisen."

 

Awards and Nominations

• THEATRE NEWSPAPER AWARD 2019/2020 for Lenka Vagnerová: concept, direction and choreography
• THALIA AWARD NOMINATION 2020 for Michal Heriban