Marina Abramović premieres most ambitious work of her career at Manchester’s Aviva Studios

•Balkan Erotic Epic (9th – 19th October 2025) marks Abramović’s largest-scale performance work to date, featuring a cast of over 70 performers.

•Rooted in the artist’s Balkan heritage, this bold new work combines dance, song, and ritual to explore desire, spirituality, and our connection to nature.

•Merging elements of performative tradition with sensuality and eroticism, Balkan Erotic Epic reflects Abramović’s ongoing exploration of the body, sexuality, and the limits of human experience.

•Tickets go on-sale to Factory International members on Thursday 22nd May and to general public on Thursday 29th May at www.factoryinternational.org  

Factory International, the organisation behind Manchester International Festival and the city’s landmark cultural space Aviva Studios, will present the world premiere of Balkan Erotic Epic – a large-scale new work created by internationally-renowned artist Marina Abramović (9th – 19th October 2025).

Drawing from the rich heritage of Balkan folklore, this powerful, durational performance fuses dance, song and ritual in an immersive exploration of eroticism, spirituality and cultural tradition. Born in the Balkans and deeply influenced by its spiritual practices, Abramović revisits ancient mythologies and folklore related to the erotic rituals of the region, rediscovering the past and presenting it in a new light.

Brought to life by a cast of over 70 performers – including dancers, musicians and singers – the production unfolds across thirteen visceral scenes, each drawing on rituals, legends and beliefs from the Balkan region.  Audiences are invited to navigate the performance freely – with pop-up encounters punctuating the action including intimate performances, feverish dances, and haunting songs.

From ‘Fertility Rite’, a fevered ritual where bodies writhe against the ground in a desperate call for fertility; to ‘Massaging the Breast’, where women gesticulate over graves to awaken the earth to ‘In Scaring the Gods’, where women bare themselves to the sky to banish storms, the work invites audiences to reclaim the body as a site of power, mystery and transformation.

Balkan Erotic Epic draws from folklore and ancestral traditions spanning Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Roma and Traveller cultures, focusing on the erotic not as mere provocation, but as a vital spiritual and life force. In many ancient societies, erotic rituals were sacred expressions of connection between the body, the earth, and the cosmos – far removed from modern associations with pornography or taboo.

“In our culture today, we label anything erotic as pornography”, says Marina Abramović. “Balkan Erotic Epic is the most ambitious work in my career. This gives me a chance to go back to my Slavic roots and culture, look back to ancient rituals and deal with sexuality, in relation to the universe and the unanswered questions of our existence. Through this project I would like to show poetry, desperation, pain, hope, suffering, and reflect our own mortality.”

This extraordinary new work marks a major moment in Abramović’s celebrated career, and a rare opportunity for UK audiences to experience the full force of her creative vision in an ambitious, immersive performance of unprecedented scale.

John McGrath, Artistic Director and Chief Executive, Factory International said: “It is a real honour to be working with Marina Abramović on the world premiere of Balkan Erotic Epic at Aviva Studios. Marina is one of the most influential artists of our time, connecting with audiences across the globe – from the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury to MoMA in New York. This new performance work offers an unmissable opportunity for audiences to experience the next chapter of her creative life – bold, immersive, and on a scale that’s truly unprecedented.”

Balkan Erotic Epic has been commissioned by Factory International, Berliner Festspiele, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Park Avenue Armory and WestK. It is produced by Factory International. Following the world premiere in Manchester, Factory International will present Balkan Erotic Epic to international co-commissioners, starting in Barcelona in January 2026.

Marina Abramović will be giving an exclusive artist talk celebrating the world premiere of Balkan Erotic Epic at Aviva Studios on Saturday 11th October (4-5pm).

LISTINGS:

PERFORMANCE

Marina Abramović: Balkan Erotic Epic

9th – 19th October 2025

Aviva Studios, Home of Factory International

Water Street, Manchester, M3 4JQ

TALK

Marina Abramović: Artist Talk

Saturday 11th October, 4-5pm

Aviva Studios, Home of Factory International

Water Street, Manchester, M3 4JQ

An exclusive artist talk celebrating the world premiere of Balkan Erotic Epic at Aviva Studios