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The Last Minutes Before Mars

Existential dread permeates our lives like the searing mist of a bubonic fart. We look longingly into the night sky at that small red dot and foolishly dream of beginning again, as if our daily struggles on Earth will be more easily resolved at -65° and with the help of high doses of cosmic radiation. The Last Minutes Before Mars invites you into the world of a group of young people — the last generation, perhaps — to meet their family, their friends and spend time in the precious spaces of their lives. This sets the scene for your encounter with the other strangers in the room,in a collective experience — hand in hand, arm in arm, face-to-face — exploring the fact that, no matter what happens to us, we live our different lives all on the same journey, toward the same destination; now, hundreds of thousands of years ago, and beyond, in a future too terrifyingly lovely to imagine.

This moment is gone, we’ve moved on to the next moment. Agree or disagree? The next moment has also moved on. Agree or disagree? Time does not exist: Agree or disagree? Neither does space. Agree or disagree? Everything is happening at once. Agree or disagree? This is perfect. Agree or disagree? One day we will not exist. Agree or disagree? Human extinction would not be so bad. Agree or disagree? When I was a teenager I had my own bedroom. Agree or disagree? 

The Last Minutes Before Mars combines 360° video and live performance, features a group of young people from Milan, and asks the deep question: what are the necessary and sufficient conditions to produce a beautiful perfectly ordinary day. 

“Right at the opening, the youngsters leave no doubt who will be ‘the boss’ here in the future.”

Sven Westernströer, WAZ (2020)

Presentation History

2023
April
Triennale Milano Teatro & ZONA K; Milan, Italy
March
Triennale Milano Teatro & ZONA K; Milan, Italy
2021
December
Schauspielhaus Bochum; Bochum, Germany
2020
December
Schauspielhaus Bochum; Bochum, Germany
November
Schauspielhaus Bochum; Bochum, Germany
October
Schauspielhaus Bochum; Bochum, Germany
September
Schauspielhaus Bochum; Bochum, Germany

Original Credits

The Original Production of The Last Minutes Before Mars at Schauspielhaus Bochum in 2020 was:
Conceived and Directed by Darren O’Donnell
Film Produced by Alice Fleming
Design by Sorcha Gibson
Music Composition by Isola Music
with Co-Devisors Konstantin Bock, Alice Fleming, Tina Fance, Jana Eiting, Chiara Prodi, Kiera O’Brien, Thule Van Den Dam, William Drew, Sara Guttadauro, Sara Ben Hamouda, Andrada Ciccotto, Fjoralba Qerimaj, Jerwin Mostiero, Morena Marra, Genny De Leon, Elisa Fasiello, Mervin Fajardo, Roberto Do Carmo, Lynn Dokoohaki, Joanna Gawor, Eeske Hahn, Christopher Rocholl, Emma Rose, Pascal Ulrich, Sonja Vallot & Fi Nicholson.

The Last Minutes Before Mars was originally co-commissioned and co-produced by Triennale Milano Teatro and ZONA K, with support from the Canada Council of the Arts, development support from the Australian Council for the Arts and the Goethe Institut Toronto. With thanks to Stephen O’Connell & Leticia Gozzini from Itas Giulio Natta.