Marina Abramović has never shied away from challenging our understanding of performance art, and the scale, nature, and raw intensity of her latest project, Balkan Erotic Epic, more than lives up to its provocative title. Drawing on the rich heritage of Balkan folklore, the four-hour immersive interdisciplinary performance explores eroticism, spirituality, and cultural tradition. At its world premiere this week at Aviva Studios, the home of Factory International in Manchester, Abramović explained prior to start of the performance why the city is a great place to debut new work, as “you’re all crazy people here”.
Balkan Erotic Epic has been an impressive 20 years in the making, originating from a 12-minute piece, now running at four hours in duration. That sense of scale was manifested in the choice of venue. The performance takes place in The Warehouse, a space with a ceiling 21m high and standing capacity for up to 5,000 people. The production is a fusion of live music, theatre, and dance interwoven with video and cartoon projections. It feels more like a living world. Upon entering the space, you’re immediately confronted with the funeral lament for Josip Broz Tito – the leader of Communist Yugoslavia who led the partisan resistance against the Nazis in World War II, then ruled as president for 35 years. A singer Sveltana Spajić appears in an enormous gown, performing the lament continuously for four hours. After that, you’re free to take your own direction, and explore the space as you wish.
Off to one side, a group of Balkan sworn virgins perform a knife dance beside a cemetery orgy of humans and skeletons, whilst the rest of the space stretches out into a wide, open expanse of other rituals. This isn’t a play, musical or art exhibition, and the word “show” doesn’t quite do it justice. Some elements do have an eroticism to them, not least Fucking The Ground / Fertility Rites, in which five performers hump the ground as a gesture of natural fertilisation. But others less so, like Kolo, a folk dance associated with social and religious gatherings.
Elke Luyten, a whimsical Flemish scientist, interjects some much-needed comic relief, detailing the recipes and purposes of various magical potions. Beneath the spectacle, there’s something innately personal about the work. For Abramović, “it’s like birthing 13 children all at once”, referencing the 13 rituals for audience members to witness. Drawing on her Balkan roots and the region’s spiritual and folkloric heritage, she returns to ancient myths that bind eroticism with ritual and the sacred.
It is important not to be judgemental; this is not pornography but a study and display of rituals. In many ancient societies, erotic rituals were sacred expressions of connection between the body, the earth, and the cosmos – far removed from modern associations. Neither is Balkan Erotic Epic a purely historical piece. Whilst many of the performers hail from the Balkans, the remainder come from Manchester and the surrounding area. It’s a piece that points towards the future, and reflects on the ways in which we might interrogate and retain these rituals in years to come. Much is left open to interpretation. Some rituals have a clear beginning and end, looping throughout the evening. Others, like Scaring the Gods to Stop the Rain – in which a group of women flash their vaginas at the ground to protect the crops – unfold gradually, reaching a climax only at the end of the evening.
Still, there are criticisms to make. Without the accompanying programme, it is doubtful whether the audience would have fully understood the rituals on display. And while the piece aims to demystify these often-misunderstood practices, some might argue that turning them into a spectacle only pushes them further out of reach. Nonetheless, the work is both shocking and deeply emotive, demonstrating a sense of ambition and scale that few artists could match. Following the world premiere in Manchester, Factory International will present Balkan Erotic Epic to international co- commissioners, starting in Barcelona in January 2026.