LABYRINTHS

Our main discipline and the core of Recover Laboratory is a multisensory and immersive art labyrinth. It is an interdisciplinary production, born in the steamy crossroads of contemporary art and contemporary circus. The site-specific labyrinth is always created in interesting and unconventional spaces, always as a new individual production. Our philosophy is, that the space is the first performer and the artwork is always built around it. We have created labyrinths in an old factory, an air raid shelter, ancient stone tunnels and waste water treatment plants.

The labyrinth is designed to draw the participant's thoughts into the deep unknown, turning the focus to oneself. It is a personal experience where everyone can submerge themselves in their own desired way, and decide how far they want to take the experience. As one makes their way through the surreal labyrinth, they encounter performers, interactive artworks, live installations and other scenes with music, dance, performance art and much more.

Have a look at the previous labyrinths here.

2018: UNDERNEATH

Helsinki FIN / Under the ground in an air raid shelter

26.9.-19.12.2018

Underneath was created in a public shelter in Meilahti, in collaboration with the Rescue Department of Helsinki. The space, mined into bedrock, is used a shelter in case of an emergency for the people living in the area. Recover Laboratory transformed the shelter into a surreal parallel universe in the winter of 2018.

1200 people experienced Underneath during the three month performance period.

Read more here.

2017: JOY OF SPLEEN

Kummelholmen, Stockholm SWE & Suomenlinna, Helsinki FIN

2017

Spleen (french) is the melancholy of a modern (privileged) human; a collective and simultaneously excruciatingly private feeling. It is a form of boredom, sorrow, detachment, helplessness and insignificance; parallel to an ongoing, permanent, personal catastrophe. It is grey and deep blue, almost black but never quite.

And in the center, there is stillness.

Recover Laboratory's Joy of Spleen was an immersive multi-artistic live-installation, a ritual-like performance performed in Stockholm Fringe in Sweden and Viaporin Kekri in Finland. In Stockholm the immersive experience was built into Kummelholmen, an old heating factory, and in Helsinki the artwork flowed through the ancient tunnels of Suomenlinna fortress island.

Read more at Kulttuurikuuri blog (in Finnish), and at SVT (in Swedish) or at Circus Info (in Finnish) .

In Stockholm Fringe the show was nominated for the Grand Prix out of 100 performances from 32 countries. The wild and ambitious attitude of the crew resulted in the group being awarded for their Festival Spirit.

Joy of Spleen Crew

2016: RECOVER LABORATORY

Helsinki, Viikinmäki Waste Water Treatment Plant (FIN)

Summer 2016

We created a 2 km long journey under the ground in the huge caves under a waster water treatment plant in Viikinmäki in Helsinki. The art-labyrinth was a holistic multidisciplinary performance, that still carried the name Recover Laboratory back then. After this performance we formed the Recover Laboratory organization, taking the original name of the labyrinth for our multi-artistic company.

Recover Laboratory in Viikinmäki was a continuum for Recover Laboratory in Turku, the previous year. Themes of breaking the fourth wall, connecting with the audience, creating an immersive environment and giving the audience the responsibility for their own experience were in the core of this production.

Read more about the labyrinth in Viikinmäki at Helsingin Uutiset (in Finnish), City.fi (in Finnish), or at Lights & Music blog (in Finnish).

2016 Recover Laboratory Crew

2015: RECOVER LABORATORY

Turku, Waste Water Treatment Plant of Kakolanmäki (FIN)

This was the second edition of Recover Laboratory - an experiential contemporary circus and art performance. It was held in May 2015 in the water treatment plant of the city Turku in Finland. The series of performances took place in an underground cave complex of the water treatment plant beneath the river Aura. Ten separate shows were organised, and each evening of the performance was sold out.

2015 Recover Laboratory Crew

2014: RECOVER LABORATORY

Köysiteatteri, Turku (FIN)

The first ever Recover Laboratory art labyrinth, where the idea was born and the journey started.

2014 Recover Laboratory Crew