ARCHE

About

ARCHE is a music-theatre installation premiered at the 20th Münchener Biennale. Composer Eugene Birman and librettist/stage director Katharina Schmitt explore the origins and contemporary practice of kung fu, seeking connections to song. In ARCHE this knowledge is framed musically and dramatically and presented as a freely accessible installation. The piece examines martial arts as a living archive inscribed in the body, in art, documents and objects—a practice defined by rhythm, movement, breath and concentration. It references kung fu culture across East and West, from classical treatises and 1970s kung fu cinema to breakdance-inspired movement and wuxia novels such as Jin Yong’s The Legend of the Condor Heroes. The work also features “Fujian White Crane” kung fu, a renowned Southern Chinese martial art designated as China’s National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2008. The format is an intermedia opera installation rather than a conventional staged opera.