Balkan Erotic Epic: Marina Abramović’s performance explores desire, ritual and the power of the body

Balkan Erotic Epic, the latest Marina Abramović performance, takes over Manchester’s Aviva Studios from 9th to 19th October 2025, marking the world premiere of one of the artist’s most ambitious projects to date. Presented by Factory International, this large-scale work brings together over seventy performers in a four-hour ritual that reimagines ancient Balkan myth through the lens of contemporary art.

The vision of a pioneering performance artist

Widely regarded as the world’s most influential performance artist, Abramović has built her career by testing the limits of endurance, vulnerability, and connection between artist and audience. With Balkan Erotic Epic, she turns to her Slavic roots, revisiting ancestral traditions from Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, and beyond. The result is a visceral exploration of how eroticism once served as a sacred language—linking the body to the cosmos, nature, and fertility.

Abramović describes this project as her chance to “go back to ancient rituals and deal with sexuality in relation to the universe and the unanswered questions of our existence.” She aims to reveal the poetry and pain within the human condition—where spirituality and sensuality coexist.

An immersive performance rooted in Balkan myth

This immersive performance unfolds across thirteen interconnected scenes that audiences are free to navigate at their own pace. Each ritual is inspired by regional folklore—stories passed down through generations where the erotic was revered, not shamed.

Among the most striking moments are Fertility Rite, where bodies writhe against the earth in a primal call for life; Massaging the Breast, a gesture of awakening the land’s fertility; and In Scaring the Gods, where women bare themselves to the heavens to calm the storms. Together, these acts form a haunting, hypnotic choreography of bodies and voices—an invocation of energy both human and divine.

Through dance, song, and ceremony, Abramović reclaims the body as a site of power and transformation. The performance resists modern notions of eroticism as mere provocation, instead returning it to its ancient role as a bridge between the spiritual and the physical.

From Manchester to the world

Commissioned by Factory International in collaboration with Berliner Festspiele, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Park Avenue Armory, and WestK, Balkan Erotic Epic will embark on an international tour following its Manchester debut, beginning in Barcelona in early 2026.

John McGrath, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Factory International, calls it “an unmissable opportunity for audiences to experience the next chapter of Abramović’s creative life—bold, immersive, and on a scale that’s truly unprecedented.”

At nearly 80, Abramović remains fearless in her pursuit of truth through performance. With Balkan Erotic Epic, she invites us to confront the taboos surrounding desire and spirit, and to rediscover the primal poetry within our own bodies.

Step inside a rare dialogue between Marina Abramović and Michèle Lamy, where they reflect on failure as a source of creativity, the body as a vessel for expression, and the courage it takes to live freely through art. Read the full conversation to discover how two originals redefine what it means to be fearless.