ROHTKO is nothing short of a sensational work. Everything is saturated — quite literally, with vivid colours, immersive lighting, and resonant bass — and symbolically, as the central theme of the piece is steeped in philosophical inquiry that proliferates in multiple directions – art forgery, NFT, methodology of acting, museum-artist relationship, romantic affairs, etc. “What is original?” serves as the guiding thread, drawing the audience through a four-hour journey that is as intellectually rigorous as it is sensorially rich. From the true story of a forged Rothko painting sold in 2004 for $8.3 million, to the interplay between theatrical and cinematic forms, ROHTKO is a ferocious dance across genres, themes, and conceptions of time.
The piece is unapologetically demanding because of its fragmented nature. The first half is an extended build-up consisting of a sumptuous set, live actors, live footage, and the English/Dutch subtitles. The storyline is delivered largely through dialogue primarily in Polish and Latvian. This narrative layer, while compelling, is visually taxing; my gaze was required to shift constantly between all elements. The second act spirals into a kind of orchestrated chaos. Additional screens emerge, projecting pre-recorded footage and overlapping dialogues, interspersed with moments of group dance.
Perhaps, the disorientation echoes the theme of technological overstimulation, pointing to the loss of agency in the age of seemingly infinite choice and opportunity. Although rich in symbolism and conceptual ambition, its visual density and abundance at times verge on excess, risking a dilution of its deeper insights.
Thankfully, the skill of the actors captivates the audience just as much as the striking scene transitions. Each and every character’s exaggerated personas were vividly expressed through hair, makeup, costume, and physicality, contributing to the coherence and unfolding of the piece’s central enquiry. The unforgiving live close-up footage magnifies each flicker of expression, offering no refuge from the risk of slipping out of character, yet the cast amplifies the emotional resonance of their performances masterfully through this exposure. Across the four-hour span, even when my attention drifted towards a background actor, not once did they risk puncturing the illusion. Even those on the periphery were entirely committed to inhabiting the world of the piece.
At times, the dialogue gestures to the person behind the stage character. It invites the audience to engage not only with the role but also with the actor’s presence. This interplay between authenticity and fabrication stands as a powerful testament to the piece’s thematic concern: the co-existence of the fake and the real, which is what we typically understand as binary opposites.
All in all, ROHTKO is a viscerally stimulating experience. A different spatial configuration, both in terms of audience distribution and set layout — might mitigate the occasional sense of visual and cognitive overload, allowing for deeper absorption of the work’s many ambitious elements. Nevertheless, the production’s audacious use of colour, sound, performance, and transformation earns it nothing short of a standing ovation. Rosina LUI 28th June 2025
