Tea Journey

When I first saw a video of a japanese tea ceremony or „the way of tea“, I was entchanted by the patience, details and different understanding of time that it showed. At that time, I was exploring zen buddism and its influence on this art of tea making was obvious. I wanted to gain the knowledge and skils about this art, but the deeper I went, the more obvious it became that my attempt was in vain – I could not possibly know it by only reading or watching videos. I had to try it myself. This is my vision of a tea ceremony. Preparation of tea is the awareness of each moment, being in the present moment and learning to be patient alone and also while being watched by many people, who may expect something from you. I start the performance as a performer and at some time become an observer by inviting someone from the audience to take the role of the performer. Is the performer a mirror? What do the shared time in space provoke in the audience as well as in the performer?