The Automata Universe Barribrossa Festival 2015

The poetics of automata or mechanical toys, and the memories of the automated devices at Tibidabo, with their enchanted mirrors, take on a new playful form. Based on Brossa’s poetics, their imaginary is a source of surprises such as the marionettes at Els 4 Gats and the cases of Dau al Set and the historical avant-gardes.

Automatàrium is a theatrical installation inspired by the universe of automata and the recreational slot machines built in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Examples include ‘La Moños’ and the Gipsy Queen, two devices displayed at the historical Museum in Tibidabo. In Automatàrium, a group of artists step inside individual timber and perspex cubicles that reproduce the original constructions. Dynamic movements, loops, comic elements, snippets of circus, song, and mime: an interaction with spectators who use a token to activate the devices and enter a kind of wonderland reminiscent of the work of Joan Brossa.

Automata: Oriol Aubets, Neus Umbert, Jorge Andolz, Mila Von Chobiak, Tamsin Hull, Tatiana Da Silveira, Joaquin Ortega, Jaume Jové
Exhibitor, director, wardrobe, producer and manager: David Berga
Set design: Pablo Paz

Barribrossa 2015