This lethargic, alchemical space filled with all kinds of potential is not fully revealed. Therefore, there is no metaphorical principle here, no system of figurative constructions, and no system of thoughtful reflection. It is rather the symbolic space of a dream, where anything is possible. The space of dream, shall we say, may be presented as a system of images, but since there is nothing here to unify the images, it can only be hinted at. It seemed proper to designate it by the two authorial figures who lie at the basis of the birth of the text: Pushkin and Calderon.
So did the space actually arise from the “dream of reason” of these two representatives of world literature. This is not a set design in the usual sense. You can give it a different name, but that would make no sense, for it would still be very inaccurate. It is and is not an installation of textural groups. It's not even part of the performance space, no. It is more like signs... Like a road sign, it makes it possible to journey on. For me, of course, it was quite an unexpected turn, for it is not connected with the usual professional presentation of actions in relation to an artistic project with its roots in dramatic theater. This was a completely different process.
This literally may be correlated to the notion of “seeing what is important only at a distance.” Huge figures swim out of another space. It does not matter whether this is a dream or not. It’s from a space of another kind. These are figures that, in certain scenes, lose the properties of specific images – Pushkin, for example – and transform into abstract structures.
I was greatly aided by certain artists I love in the creation of this kind of set design, in understanding the laws of space and in building it. For example, during a significant period in his creative biography, the famed sculptor Allen Jones created metal sculptures from flat sheets of thick steel. What was most interesting was how these sculptures interacted. The same forms existed in different scales. Each time they appeared as if anew, something new was revealed in them. They ceased to be merely sculptural images in three dimensions. As a result, he created a space of meaning that exceeded three-dimensional limits. I suspect that my experience observing this artist and his work influenced what I did for this project.