The performance is in English.

IKARUS Award 2026  for contemporary dance and performance

The words are at the heart of the latest performance by Iva Sveshtarova and Willy Prager, which invites us to think about power through the body – a body in whose memory it pulsates, not as an idea, but as a muscle, a habit, a breath. From an instrument of violence, the two choreographers transform the body into a territory of vulnerability, and power into new, seemingly harmless forms. It becomes theatre – grandiose, merciless, absurd. In Bodies of Power, bodies are props, the choir is the people, and the stage is life. Watching the performance, you will inevitably ask yourself: haven’t I seen this before? Yes, you have probably seen it – in archive photos, interviews and reports from institutions, in courtrooms and court decisions, bills, regulations. 

The performance is not funny, despite the amusing moments in it. It remains unclear what it is making fun of—the body or power, politics or society. The only thing that is clear is that it all begins with an execution. 

In addition to being choreographers, Iva Sveshtarova and Willy Prager also appear on stage as performers, together with Violeta Vitanova, Vasilia Drebova, and Daniel Denev. The music is by Tsvetan Momchilov, the lighting is by Stefan Dimitrov, the set designer and consultant is Maria-

Emilia Ivanova, and the costumes are by Paula Popova. The Sveshtarova & Prager duo is well known to fans of contemporary dance and performance because the two have not only won several IKAR awards, but are also among the founders (together with Stephan A. Shtereff) of the Antistatic International Festival for Contemporary Dance and Performance. Through their organization Brain Store Project, they publish the only dance magazine currently available in Bulgaria. After “shamebox”, “Made for Happiness”, and “Euphoria of Sickness Or crossing beyond microscopic boundaries”, the two prove that they are not only capable of interpreting contemporary crises and phenomena, but also of bringing together impressive artists in one place.

Iva Sveshtatova graduated in “Choreography and performance” from the Institute of Applied Theatre Studies in Giessen, Germany, “Synthetic and Stage Art” from the University of Plovdiv and the experimental theatre classes 4XC. In 2006 she was a grantee of “DanceWeb”. From 2002 to 2006 she was part of the company “Acto – Instituto de Arte Dramatica”, Portugal. She has worked with directors and choreographers such as Nikolay Georgiev, Galina Borisova, Ani Vaseva, Filipe Pereira, Deufert and Plischke, Thomas Lehmen, Maren Strack, Helena Botto, Andre Rio-Sarsey, Anna Dankova, etc. Since 2007 she has been a member of the Brain Store Project. 

Iva Sveshtarova is the author of the performances “Perfectly Pink” (ICARUS Award nomination for Contemporary Dance and Performance, 2019), “a (e) ffect”, “Doing that thing again”, “Mirror Phase” and “Kafka’s Metamorphosis” (production by Acto – Instituto de Arte Dramatica, Portugal). Sveshtarova collaborates artistically with the artists Willy Prager and Rose Beermann (Germany). In recent years she and Willy Prager co-authored the following works: and “Bodies of Power”, “Euphoria of Sickness Or crossing beyond microscopic boundaries”, “Before the end … (of the world)”, “A Better Life” (a collaboration between Sveshtarova, Prager and Stiefermann, Germany), “Made for Happiness”, “shamebox” with Willy Prager, ”Balkan dance reality show” (collective work with Rosa Beermann and Sonja Pregrad), “Our last pas de deux” by Galina Borissova, “Museum of Hygiene”, “Donna Clara” and “Cliché”, etc. Contemporary performances with Rosa Bergmann: “Soft things”, “Strip naked, talk naked” (realized within “FREISCHWIMMER” 2014/15, produced by “Sophiensaele”, Berlin), “Show me how” and “Velocity Pumps” (in cooperation with Tessa Theisen). 

Iva Sveshtarova is co-founder of the Nomad Dance Academy – Balkan Network for Contemporary Dance and of Antistatic International Festival for Contemporary Dance and Performance. Some of the co-productions of Iva Sveshtatova and Willy Prager – “shamebox” /2018/ and “Made for Happiness” /2019/ were awarded the national ICARUS award in the “Contemporary Dance and Performance” category. 

Willy Prager is an artist, working in the field of contemporary dance and performance. He graduated from the experimental Theatre-Studio 4XC and Synthetic Stage Arts Bachelor’s program of the University of Plovdiv in 1999 and he also holds a Master’s degree in Solo, Dance, Authorship from the Universtität der Kunste from 2013. As a performer Willy Prager has worked with directors and choreographers such as Nikolay Georgiev, Galina Borisova, Ivo Dimchev, Matej Kejzar, deufert&plischke, Thomas Lehmen, Xavier le Roy, Dalija Acin, Maren Strack, etc. 

Willy Prager is author of the performances “Prager Strasse”, “Game-a porter”, “Transformability”, “Egyptian spring”, “The victory day” and „Less might be more”, Transformability: Forever [partly musical].

Together with Iva Sveshtarova they created and participated in “Watch your back”, “Cliche”, “Dona Clara”, “Premigration Fever”, +/- 359 Topology, “Museum of Hygiene”, “Our last pas de deux”, “Balkan Dance Reality Show”, “shamebox”, “Made for Happiness”, “A better life” and “Before the end … (of the world)”, “Euphoria of Sickness Or crossing beyond microscopic boundaries” and “Bodies of Power”.

In addition to Iva Sveshtarova, Prager has cooperated with Rose Beermann, Sonja Pregrad, Stephan Shtereff, Mila Ivanova, Nelly Mitewa, Martin Stieferman, etc. He participated in numerous international festivals such as: ImPulstanz“, Wien; “Tanz Tage“, Berlin; “ExPlore“, Bucharest; “Off Europe“, Leipzig;  “Bazzar“, Prague; “Kondenz“, Belgrade; “Platforma“, Zagreb; “Spider“, Ljubliana; “Tanz Nacht“, Berlin; Experimental theatre festival Cairo; Varna Summer”, Varna, “The Aquarius Era”, Burgas; “Water” Burgas; “ACT” Sofia; “One dance week”, Plovdiv, etc. 

Prager has won the European choreography award “Jardin d‘Europe” by ImPulsTanz“, Vienna for the performance “Тhe victory day”(2013), ICARUS award for the performance “shamebox” (2018), as well as the ICARUS award for the performance “Made for happiness” (2019). 

Prager is co-founder of the Brain Store Project Foundation (2005), the Nomad Dance Academy and the Antistatic Contemporary Dance and Performance Festival, as well as a co-producer of “Dance Magazine”.