- Hello?
- Hi, Mum!
- How are you, sweetheart?
- I'm OK. You, guys?
- We're OK too. All's fine? Work? Did you get the flu? Do you need money?
- No, everything's fine. Hey, I have to hang up, I'll call you back later, OK?
- Of course, I didn't mean to bother, call me whenever you can!
- OK, bye!
- Bye, darling!
-
- Listen...
-
- I love you.
- I love you too.

Parental Ctrl is a performance-concert about Generation Y and their parents, about the escape from reality and the dependence on virtuality, about the inevitable connections and ruptures between generations. 

CREDITS

Created in collaboration with the performers:
kata bodoki-halmen, Kinga ÖTVÖS, Krisztina SIPOS

Dramaturge, assistant to the director: Panna ADORJÁNI
Original music: bhkata & the blue screen band
Video, lights, sound: Attila ALMÁSI
Visuals, technical assistant: Radu BOGDAN
Producer: Kinga KELEMEN/GroundFloor Group
Directed by: Ferenc SINKÓ

REVIEWS

“Parental Ctrl does not speak against Generation Y, nor against any other generation. Rather, it presents an issue by highlighting its key concepts – body, language and time; it reveals the attitude of today’s younger generation and presents a number of relevant processes during the performance, but almost completely without any of the common clichés. (...) Although the performance could have easily turned into stereotypical representation, the language it uses, as well as the relationship that members of this younger generation have with their bodies, makes this impossible. The performance is carefully considered and well constructed, and speaks about these issues without falling prey to the arbitrary and popular (mostly media-invented) commonplaces of the generation gap.” Borbála Gergely: A test létezése, Játéktér

“One of the reasons why Parental Ctrl is an exciting performance is that it deals with an aspect of educational psychology, namely the impossibility of parental detachment, which has never been explored theatrically before. The performance not only discusses this issue (which has always existed, but has gained new meaning with the emergence of Generation Y), but also puts into action one of the most relevant approaches of contemporary theatre. This method of devised theatre does not follow just one single directorial concept; the starting point of the performance is the group of creators as a whole, while the end product is the result of a decentralized and collaborative creative process. (Typically both the main asset and disadvantage of this kind of production lies in its subjectivity. Although it is clear that the central issue discussed in Parental Ctrl is highly relevant to its creators, and this relevance comes across clearly, questions are raised by its one-sided approach: these questions, together with the concept of collective creation, mean that it is important to have an active audience, one that is willing to think together with the creators. Parental Ctrl is an excitingly structured, rich and personal production, whose true effect can only be felt if its partners (audience and performers) view each other as equals, as is the case with parents and children.” Ferencz Csuszner, Kollektív kontroll, Helikon

“We felt the same way about our parents and they probably had the same issues with their parents, minus the dependence on virtuality and the escape from reality – we only know about these from books and films. This is why Parental Ctrl is so good: because it is valid for all generations who want to take a look in the mirror. Credit must go to everybody who took part in making this performance a reality, for everyone contributed equally to its creation: the director Ferenc Sinkó, the dramaturg Panna Adorjáni (...) and the three performers, Krisztina Sipos, Kinga Ötvös and kata bodoki-halmen. The latter also deserves praise for the music accompanying the performance: as stated in an interview, the harmonies were written by bodoki-halmen, while the lyrics for the songs were improvised by the performers and finalized together with the dramaturg, and all of the songs were performed in English.” Kata Köllő, If I were..., Színház

“Parental Ctrl is a performance about identity. The production of GroundFloor Group, directed by Sinkó Ferenc, addresses the differences between generations from the perspective of Generation Y (born between the end of the 70s and the mid-90s). The performances does not judge, revolt or contest, instead it puts together different perspectives of life in general, from everyday issues to problems of relationships and sexuality, all inspired by the personal experiences of the performers, and filtered in a way that reflects a general and neutral vision. The performance has an interesting format: a concert that relies heavily on videos and visual effects. This type of performativity and its three excellent performers offer new ways of communication and the perfect means of expression for Generation Y. Ferenc Sinkó does not fail to surprise: all his three performances, Parallel, #swansong and Parental Ctrl, are more and more influenced by visuals and music, and are more and more interdisciplinary.” Oana Stoica: Identități de neîncadrat, dilemaveche.ro

“For a long time, the audience is slightly confused, especially those who are expecting a complete, traditional performance. Here everything seems incomplete. The search and the uncertainty become part of the performance. There is a lot of touching, they are curious about themselves and each other, they touch and stroke each other, as in a training of self-knowledge. All of this happens slowly, unhurriedly, with great attention to what is happening. This brave dramaturgy puts the audience’s patience to the test. It feels for a long time as if nothing is happening, although the opposite is true. Tiny, important moments, sounds, movements, signs of meta-communication, amplified noises. Division and fusion.”​ Gyula Balogh: Tétova útkeresés, érintésekkel, Népszava.hu

TOURS & FESTIVALS ABROAD

Konfrontacje Teatralne, Lublin, Poland, 2016.

GROUNDFLOOR GROUP

GroundFloor Group (founded in 2004) is a company from Cluj-Napoca, Romania, member of independent contemporary art space: Fabrica de Pensule. As a project-based dance/theatre company it produces the work of director and choreographer Ferenc Sinkó: “Parental Ctrl” (2015) "Parallel" (2013), “Divas” (2011), “post.sync” (2010), “Message” (2009) and “sunSET”(2007). Mixing art forms and thinking interdisciplinary between theatre, dance, video and music, these performances had been presented in several festivals in Europe. It aims to turn Cluj-Napoca into a live center of contemporary dance and theatre, by producing performances, organizing meetings, workshops, festivals, professional exchanges, and developing an appreciative and exigent audience for these events. 

GroundFloor Group is the producer of Trans-Contact, an International Contact Improvisation Festival, where more than 50 international teachers had been contributing to the professional development of over 530 participants (performers and non performers) and the growth of CI community in Romania.

COPRODUCERS

Fabrica de Pensule

SUPPORTERS

The performance was created in the frame of Hotspot.art – Contemporary Art and Culture for Communities, a project coordinated by The Paintbrush Factory, and supported by a grant from Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and the Romanian Government.