Country: Belgium 🇧🇪
Lucas Dragone is a visual artist, and story-teller. 
Having studied at the Lassaad International School of Theatre in Brussels, still today Lucas keeps very close ties with Lassaad, who he considers to be one of his life-long mentors. He worked with the Compagnie Barbiana in Belgium as performer, director and teacher. He also explored theatre in Italy and Brazil. After a few years he decided to switch from theatre to visual-arts and music as a means to express his creativity. Making music videos, documentaries, short films and visual experiments, all inspired by his honest outlook on life, giving as much importance to the people and captured situations as he does to the style.
In the past few years, Lucas initiated a project of documenting and capturing various forms of theaters from Asia and around the world through his camera. By doing this, Lucas hopes to contribute to the documentation of theatre forms: to try and depict the transmission of this cultural patrimony to the next generations by witnessing and photographing the work of masters, the craftsmanship of the creators, enter the world of actors, artists and directors from preparation to the performance.
" Documenting Performing Arts is like working on a theme as important as climat change, a process that seems inexorable, but dealing with a human knowledge that is disappearing.
The roots of traditional theater are fading away, young generations are not eager to spend 10 years learning a movement, a dance. Every theater master I met in Asia told me that. In india less and less people are interested in kathakali, Gotipua, Mallakhamb.
All these practices demand a lot of rules and disciplines, and in Asia it takes a lifetime to achieve a good level to perform on stage. In Asia, theater takes part in everyday life. It is something of a ceremonial religious rite.
Rather than a quest for exoticism, this project is an archival work to reflect a diversity that may disappear.
Through theater we can understand - others - better, it is about sharing even in its most basical and instinctive way, theater is about sharing at least the space on stage... All those practices demand a lot of rules and disciplines. In Asia it takes a life time to achieve a good level to performe on stage. In Asia theater is a part of every day life, there is something of a ceremonial and spiritual rite. In today's world, everything goes fast, people are less inclined to come and watch these traditons in theater.
To me theater is also about trying to understand a little bit of Humanity.
Imagine a world without art....
No pictures in children’s books, no poetry, no music... The world would be a very dull and boring place.
Over the past decade, the practice of arts has significantly decreased in schools because these activities are seen as less important to society. By its very nature, art is a kind of documentation - it reflects the society in which it was made, and the intention of the artist who created it. "
In the past few years, Lucas initiated a project of documenting and capturing various forms of theaters from Asia and around the world through his camera. By doing this, Lucas hopes to contribute to the documentation of theatre forms: to try and depict the transmission of this cultural patrimony to the next generations by witnessing and photographing the work of masters, the craftsmanship of the creators, enter the world of actors, artists and directors from preparation to the performance.
" Documenting Performing Arts is like working on a theme as important as climat change, a process that seems inexorable, but dealing with a human knowledge that is disappearing.
The roots of traditional theater are fading away, young generations are not eager to spend 10 years learning a movement, a dance. Every theater master I met in Asia told me that. In india less and less people are interested in kathakali, Gotipua, Mallakhamb.
All these practices demand a lot of rules and disciplines, and in Asia it takes a lifetime to achieve a good level to perform on stage. In Asia, theater takes part in everyday life. It is something of a ceremonial religious rite.
Rather than a quest for exoticism, this project is an archival work to reflect a diversity that may disappear.
Through theater we can understand - others - better, it is about sharing even in its most basical and instinctive way, theater is about sharing at least the space on stage... All those practices demand a lot of rules and disciplines. In Asia it takes a life time to achieve a good level to performe on stage. In Asia theater is a part of every day life, there is something of a ceremonial and spiritual rite. In today's world, everything goes fast, people are less inclined to come and watch these traditons in theater.
To me theater is also about trying to understand a little bit of Humanity.
Imagine a world without art....
No pictures in children’s books, no poetry, no music... The world would be a very dull and boring place.
Over the past decade, the practice of arts has significantly decreased in schools because these activities are seen as less important to society. By its very nature, art is a kind of documentation - it reflects the society in which it was made, and the intention of the artist who created it. "