Salford lecturers and five alumni star in Marina Abramović's new four-hour epic

Marina Abramović, one of the world’s most influential performance artists, will debut her new performance work, Balkan Erotic Epic, at Manchester’s Aviva Studios over a ten-day run from Thursday 9 October to Sunday 19 October.

The four-hour epic is one of the most ambitious theatrical shows ever shown in Manchester and is dubbed ‘a four-hour ritual where ancient myth meets performance art.’

Balkan Erotic Epic will explore the eroticism, spirituality and traditions of Abramović's native Serbia, former Yugoslavia, through 13 visceral scenes. It will feature a cast of over 70 performers, dancers, musicians and singers across Aviva Studios and is an immersive experience for the audience who are free to choose their own path through the durational performance.

Ali Matthews, a Senior Lecturer in Theatre and Performance at the University and Yue Ying Ho, an Associate Lecturer and current rehearsal director for Emergence is performing in the show alongside five MA Dance alumni Maisha Kungu (2022), Kennedy Brim (2022), Lizzie Owen (2023) Andrea Louca (2024) and Clara Selberg (2025).

They will all feature as durational performers, meaning they will be involved for the full four-hour performance, with the cast offered pre-rehearsal training from Abramović’s team to help them build up their physical endurance.

Ali, who is also a freelance performance artist, said: “It’s amazing to be a part of a production on this scale that has this big vision.

“As an artist that has led my own projects for a number of years, it’s been lovely to perform in a production where you really feel that all the stops are being pulled out and everyone is working at the top of their game.”

Abramović calls Balkan Erotic Epic ‘the most ambitious work’ of her career. The performance is said to push the boundaries of eroticism and performance art, asking its audience: what are our bodies truly for?

On its graphic and unflinching nature, Ali added: “I think audiences are going to be shocked by a few of the things in the piece, but every scene is not shock for shock’s sake. Each scene is very deliberate and comes from a very performative art tradition and the music and design is just incredible.

“The audience may initially be overwhelmed but will then be taken in by the immersive beauty of the show.”

Having five Salford alumni as part of the cast is a major achievement for our award-winning MA Dance: Performance and Professional Practices programme and MA Dance Choreography, which continue to consistently rank as one of the best dance programmes in the country and has an endless list of alumni starring in international dance companies.

Ali added: “It is testament to the integrity of the programme and the course tutors that they have prepared graduates to be able to land opportunities like this. They should be very proud to be so well represented in the cast.”

Tickets are still available for the show which has its world premiere tomorrow night (Thursday 9 October).

Following its run in Manchester, the show will evolve into two separate touring versions that are set to visit New York, Barcelona and Berlin.