A work encounter with Studio Kokyu and the participants of the “Practicing Action” programme

“On the Paths of Practice”, taking place on 18 December 2026 at Studio Na Grobli at the Grotowski Institute, will be an opportunity to share the work undertaken as part of the latest edition of the educational and research programme “Practicing Action”. At the midpoint of a process that began on 28 September, we wish to open our explorations to an audience — to share selected areas of research, reflect on what is emerging from our shared practice, and consider the questions that lead us forward.

At the heart of the encounter will be “Action Trinity – The Letter”: a performative structure that brings together training, personal practice and a theatrical event. Developed through successive configurations of the Studio’s ensemble, it now provides a space for a new group of participants to work within. In taking up its score, each person brings their own experience, way of listening, moving and inhabiting rhythm. In this sense, the action is a letter passed on — it retains traces of earlier encounters while coming alive through the presence and work of those who take it up anew.

In our daily sessions, we bring together physical actions, work with voice and text, and experiences drawn from aikido practice. We explore the relationship between precision and improvisation, between individual technique and responsibility for a shared composition. We ask how to bring life into a repeatable form, how words become action, and how training participates in the creative process. “Trinity – The Letter” allows us to approach these questions through concrete tasks, effort, concentration, adjustment and repetition.

The literary inspiration for the action remains the “Hymn of the Pearl”, a passage from the apocryphal “Acts of Thomas”. We respond to its call through body, voice and rhythm, seeking a form of contemporary ritual — a practice that focuses attention, deepens presence and builds a relationship between those performing the action and those witnessing their work.

The December presentation will bear witness to a process that remains open and will continue until March 2027. With “Trinity – The Letter” at its centre, we also wish to offer a glimpse into the broader context of the Studio’s work, leaving room for material and directions that emerge from the encounter with the new group. We invite the audience to accompany us at this stage of our journey — to encounter a practice that becomes a theatrical event through shared action.