Q: What is lost in translation?

Alessia Arcuri and Sara Svati (2026) Q. Photo: Pablo La Rosa

Q: What is lost in translation?
Theate Deli, London (UK). 2024

Concept, costume and performer: Sara Svati.
Devising, research, performance design: Sara Svati, Alessia Arcuri.
Design: Alessia Arcuri;
Presented as part of Voila Festival.

The performance lecture reinterprets the biblical text Ecclesiastes (or Qohelet) through the lens of indexing as a method for training AI models. Exploring the intersections of language, interpretation, and secularism, the performance engages with printed textual prompts and animated typographic visuals. These elements equip Q, the narrator, with the tools to navigate divination, philosophy, black humor, and esoteric studies.

The script (presented as ubound ‘books’ of A4 sheets of paper) work as a dramaturgical prompt as well as a tool for documentation: as the performance ends, the sheets are archived into a volume which follows a new sequence for the script.

Alessia Arcuri and Sara Svati (2026) Q. Photo: Pablo La Rosa

Alessia Arcuri and Sara Svati (2026) Q. Performance Score.

Alessia Arcuri and Sara Svati (2026) Q. Photo: Pablo La Rosa

Body Language: Broken Printer
Workshop, ICA, London

Q: What is lost in translation?
Performance (2024) with Orientale Sarda, presented at Voila Festival

Autocoscienza Writing Group
Collective (2022 – ongoing)
Working with and promoting the work of Italian feminist and writer Lea Melandri, the collective explores experiential writing as a practice of autocoscienza (consciousness raising) using group readings and writing as a tool for collective sharing, analysis and care.

Somatic Publishing (2023)
Kingston School of Art,
with John Philip Sage
Five weeks module focusing on the relationship between interpretative strategies, performance and performativity, as well as publishing and embodied form of knowledge production and dissemination.

Evening Class
Collective (2018–2021)
Collective experimenting with self-organised
education and design practice, through public
workshops, talks and debates, reading groups, radio broadcasting, performances, walks, and publishing. Through these activities, we have worked on developing a curriculum of both theory and practice.

DRAMA
Workshop series (2021–2023)
with John Philip Sage

Non-virtuoso exploration of how text can be activated, and its reception affected, through voice, sound, movement, space and collectivity.

DRAMA Workshop series (2021–2023)with John Philip SageNon-virtuoso exploration of how text can be activated, and its reception affected, through voice, sound, movement, space and collectivity.

DRAMA
Workshop series (2021–2023)
with John Philip Sage

Non-virtuoso exploration of how text can be activated, and its reception affected, through voice, sound, movement, space and collectivity.