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Kurios


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Prologue
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Personages/Characters
Costumes & Characters

    “What wonderfully strange collection of creatures! It is as if I have awakened in the middle of a dream. They speak a strange language. Some kind of code. Gibberish. Gobbledygook. Must investigate further…” — The Seeker

A fitting tribute to the power of the human imagination, the costumes of KURIOS – Cabinet of Curiosities are the result of a visual exploration of the beginnings of science, of the discoveries and inventions that led to the industrial revolution of the 19th Century – from the steam locomotive to electrical power to electromagnetic waves. They embody and celebrate the advancements of science, but in an imaginary, parallel world.

While the visual references may seem self-evident, the show’s curious yet familiar characters and costumes transport the audience to a time suspended somewhere between past and future, in an alternate reality, as if science had evolved without the internal combustion engine and as if the golden age of the steam engine had continued on, uninterrupted.

{ See More Costume Pictures }

The costumes of KURIOS – Cabinet of Curiosities are the result of unusual blends and odd associations: e.g. the attire of the Seeker’s Assistants (the Kurios) – oddball half-human, half-mechanical characters built from scraps and recycled parts by their ingenuous and ingenious creator. Costume Designer Philippe Guillotel explored unusual shapes that have affinities with the costumes of the Bauhaus or of Alfred Jarry’s Father Ubu to create startling and often amusing characters (a.k.a “The Visitors”).

           

The Seeker
    Master of the house, the Seeker is a humanist and an optimist as ingenuous as he is ingenious. With his childlike innocence, he believes in an invisible world where the craziest ideas too audacious to be shared and the grandest dreams too radical to be realized lie waiting - a place for utopian ideals, pipe-dreams, and other pie-in-the-sky ideas too forward-looking for their time. He is determined to access this world of wonders, but it's only available to those who trust their intuition and imagination.
The Kurios
    Since there is so much work to be done before his dream becomes reality, the Seeker surrounds himself with a brigade of assistants including the Winch kurios and Plunger (a.k.a. Suction Cup) kurios. These quirky robots were built from scraps and recycled parts by the Seeker himself. These imperfect, dysfunctional creatures have the distinct smell of metal, leather and the unbridled imagination of their creator.
The Curiosistanians
    They are the inhabitants of an imaginary country called Curiosistan and they turn up in the Seeker’s world in order to ignite his imagination.
The Mentalist
    The Mentalist personifies the great illusionists who reigned like rock stars during the golden age of illusion. Knowing is seeing... be careful! He can read your thoughts!
Mr. Microcosmos
    The “bigger is better” ethos that drives the retro-futuristic aesthetic of the show is on the opposite side of the spectrum of the miniaturization that characterizes the electronic era. A case in point is the costume of the pot-bellied Mr. Microcosmos. “He’s like a mechanical Obelix [from the cartoon characters Asterix & Obelix], but instead of holding a tiny dog in his arms, he lugs around a small lady in his belly wherever he goes, and he’s hardly aware of it,” says Guillotel. He is the leader, the authority figure of the group. This powerhouse of a man is the embodiment of technological proress; his sturdy world conjurs up visions of steam trains, massive structures, the Eiffel Tower, and the Grand Palais.
Mini Lili
    Mr. Microcosmos carries Mini Lili, his intuitive counterpart, inside his costume using a sling not unlike a baby carrier. Antanina Satsura, the artist who plays Mini Lili, is one-meter tall and weighs 18 kg. She lives inside her host’s overcoat. Through the door in Mr. Microcosmos’ belly, we can see the furnished interior of Mini Lili’s quarters, which include an armchair, a chandelier as well as other essentials of a Victorian home. She is the embodiment of elegance and refinement. She represents Microcomos' unconscious mind, his intuitive self, as well as his fragile and poetic side.
Nico, the Accordian Man
    He is called NICO, short of Nick ‘o Time, as he always appears confused or late and out of place. Is he a man, or an accordion? He’s curious, clumsy, a little bashful and extremely sensitive, but endearing. What’s the big picture here? Nico’s accordion costume allows him to bend way down or stand way up so he can be at eye level with absolutely everyone. His pants are folded like a piece of origami from an unwoven textile (like the material normally used in shoe lining) and are inspired by the darkrooms that were part of early cameras. Although he is a tad awkward, this level-headed feller always rises to the occasion.
Klara, the Telegraph
    She is called Klara, as in clear reception. She’s half-woman, half-antenna, and appears to have built-in radar – perhaps to receive messages from other worlds, life systems? A transmitter of the invisible. Her shoes make odd Morse code-like sounds… are these messages from the other side? Klara wears an antenna skirt made of hula-hoop-type rings. By swiveling round and pointing her apparatus in various directions, she can receive invisible electromagnetic waves. Her hoop skirt is inspired by Fritz Lang’s Metropolis and is shaped like early parabolic antennas. The print on her leotard evokes electrical circuits and connections. She symbolizes our obsession with telecommunications during the golden age of the railroad when the telegraph and the gramophone were invented. GZZZZT, VWOOOT, BLEEEP! She can read you loud and clear!

{The Seeker}

{The Kurios}

{The Curiosistanians}

{The Mentalist}

{Microcosmos}

{Mini Lili}

{NICO}

{Klara}

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