Short A man sits at a cluttered ping-pong table, looking at an image projected on the vertical rear half of the table. In the projected image, we see two men standing at the same table, their images repeating and receding into the distance.
Federico León, Las ideas. Photo: Bea Borgers (KFDA), © Federico León.
In Las ideas, what seems to be an informal meeting between two friends gradually turns into an intense creative encounter. Sitting at a messy ping-pong table equipped with a desktop computer and projector, two creative collaborators volley ideas back and forth while developing different art projects. They incorporate recordings of rehearsals, materials from other projects, proposals for future works, and spontaneous thoughts, as well as previously discarded ideas into the work.
Performed in the space between reality and fiction, Las ideas reflects the real life–working relationship of writer-director Federico León and collaborator actor Julián Tello, who perform as themselves. The work presents ideas that possibly, but not necessarily, reflect those of León and Tello—everything becoming potential working material as the creative process comes to life.
Short Two men sit in a dark room at a ping-pong table. One drinks from a glass and holds a lit cigarette; he is illuminated by a narrow spotlight that casts a shadow onto the vertical rear of the table.
Born in Buenos Aires, Federico León is a prolific writer and director for theater, film, and, increasingly, hybrid forms. His 2014 film, La última película (The last movie), traces a series of interventions at former cinemas, now turned into parking lots. His stage work has toured throughout Latin America as well as to Europe, Japan, and Australia. He is the winner of First Prize for Playwriting from Argentina’s National Theater Institute and the 2004 Konex Prize in Literature for the production of the quinquennium. He was professor in residence in 2010 at the Artists Programme at the Torcuato di Tella University, with Martín Rejtman. His plays and essays about the creative process are published by Registros.
Short A ping-pong table is littered with a laptop, a musical keyboard, a bottle of whisky, glasses, cables, pens, and paper. The rear half of the table is vertical, showing a projected image of the bottle and its shadow that repeats and recedes into the distance.
Federico León, Las ideas. Photo: Ignacio Iasparra, © Federico León.
Generous support is provided by the Consulate General of Argentina in Chicago.