Meet Katherina Radeva, an award-winning Bulgarian-born multidisciplinary theatre-maker, designer, and visual artist reshaping the theatrical landscape with her boundary-breaking approach. From the Thracian Valley, Radeva’s work has gained prominence in the UK arts scene, transcending stages, harmonising visual art, design, and storytelling. Her experiences as a first-generation migrant and disabled working woman infuse her work with a unique perspective, challenging norms and championing diversity.
Radeva’s innovative productions have earned acclaim, notably her 40th birthday masterpiece, 40/40, a deeply personal exploration of self-discovery and empowerment. Through candid voiceovers and mesmerizing choreography, the show reflects on themes of womanhood, migration, and artistic expression. With each production, Radeva pushes creative limits, crafting immersive worlds where every brushstroke and word holds the power to provoke, inspire, and transform.
In our recent conversation, we had the privilege of conversing with Katherina Radeva to uncover 40/40. Join us as we delve into her creative universe, exploring the inspiration, challenges, and passion fueling her extraordinary work.
Hi, Katherina Radeva! Before we dive in, could you give our readers a glimpse into your background and what initially drew you to the arts?
Hello! Thank you for having me. I was born in the Thracian Valley in Bulgaria to an artistic family, so I have not known anything other than being a part of the arts since a young age. At 14, I went to a specialist high school for fine arts where I mostly focused on printmaking. At 16, I won a scholarship to study at the Foundation for Arts and Design Course at The City of Bath College where I discovered that I wanted to work in the performing arts! I have been a migrant to the UK since 1999, which makes it a quarter of a century of being in-between. Being in-between is not a bad place but [it is] a place of complexity I navigate daily.
Can you talk about how turning 40 influenced the themes of 40/40 and what sparked its inspiration? Have you found any silver linings in embracing this new phase?
I think the COVID-19 pandemic has a lot to answer for. It was a time of crisis in the performance arts sector, but also a real moment for slowing down and reflecting. In 2022, I was turning 40 and wanted to do something new for me, something that pushed me [even] further, something radical, as you say. And I think, for me, the radical was that I really wanted to embrace joy. I had such hardships in my life coming from a very poor family [and] moving to the UK at 16 on my own. There is a lot of stuff I had to learn the hard way. And so, turning 40 for me, was about celebrating how far I have come as an artist, independent woman, and a migrant.
I think there are silver linings at all ages but I think that as one ages, the learning grows and so do the things and ways you want to spend your life. So, for example, while my body is changing, slowing down a little, and taking longer to recover from shows, the upshot is that I am wise enough to embrace these changes and celebrate them, rather than fight them. Not always easy but certainly a silver lining.
Can you share how you approached creating 40/40, and were there any surprising moments of self-discovery during the process?
The creative process of making 40/40 revolved a lot around laughter and a lot of dancing to ’80s tunes. I love music from the ’80s and spend so much time dancing to the music that gives me joy. That joy became a frame through which I explored themes of female joy, acceptance, and permission; themes that can be hard to confront and that is why humour and laughter make that an easier ride. So many people who have seen the show also tell me how much they find different aspects of themselves in 40/40. I guess that’s the reason the work resonates with others so much. It’s a very personal piece but full of human stories, transcending across backgrounds and experiences.
Well, the obvious one [unexpected breakthroughs] is that my body is no longer in its twenties so I get tired much more easily. I think the human mind can be very resilient. I often feel like I am 25 but in fact, I am not and my body reminds me of that all the time. Another thing has been the responses from the audiences, especially women. I never imagined this work to be such a generous space for dialogue especially between women.
How do you balance sharing social commentary while keeping a personal touch? Also, what’s the main takeaway you want audiences to get from your shows?
I talk openly about hard things with humour, and I laugh at myself. This is an access we all need to comment on social challenges. You may say that the voice notes shape the backbone of the work—they feel like diary entries—which are very personal but [at the same time] also comment on the social contexts around each moment I create and each dance I perform. For example, there is a deconstructed folk dance in the show closely connected to where I am from—the Balkans; and in the adjacent voice note, I talk about having to work very hard as a migrant to carve out the space I am dancing on. Every migrant and almost every woman knows what I am talking about, so they go with me because I become one of them—not exceptional and yet not ordinary.
What sparked your shift in perspective from not considering yourself a dancer to embracing dance in 40/40?
It’s worth pointing out that I have always danced in our Two Destination Language works, but not nearly as much as I do in 40/40. There are six distinct dances in 40/40; each a layer of my complex identity. Ultimately, 40/40 challenges notions of what dance is and who is allowed to dance on stage. That is one of its strengths and also a point of debate. I’m glad that there is debate about the different shapes, sizes and ages of dancers on stage, and I’m happy to be a part of it, and even happier that my body can occupy a bit of that dance landscape too.
Do you remember any standout reactions you’ve received from audiences?
There have been so many hugs from audience members, emails, selfies, and autographs on the 40/40 book. The overriding sense is one of community—a temporary community through shared experiences of being at and being with 40/40.
As the artistic director of Two Destination Language, you wear many hats—writing, directing, designing sets, and costumes. How do these roles come together to create a cohesive vision for your productions?
It’s two of us leading Two Destination Language: myself and Alister Lownie. We begin and end every work the same way—in dialogue about what we want the work to achieve and how we want to make our audiences feel. Why is it important to make and what are some of the things we want to say? Cohesion is not hard when you have a clear aim or clear objectives. The aims can change, and they naturally do because every process is a journey, but ultimately in the end, it’s about stepping back and seeing what we have made. Perhaps something is missing, some things are too much, and then we edit! We edit until it feels right to us. At that point, the work can meet an audience. And for us, that isn’t the end—then we begin to listen to the temperature in the room and how it’s landing with the viewers and the audience. If needed, we edit again. But, yeah, clarity is very important to our process, not least because the work we make never provides straight answers; our work strives to leave space for conversation.
Could you tell us more about your project and what inspires its ethos?
Ultimately, we are two people with very different backgrounds. I was born during communism in Bulgaria to a family of artists in a fairly tough financial frame. Alister’s background, as a Scot raised in England and the United States in the ’80s, couldn’t look more different than mine. But it is in that difference that we often find richness. That is where the real conversations begin—between different experiences. It’s where we find growth, nuance, care and understanding, and we constantly play with juxtaposition in our work. We recognise and celebrate differences and leave our audience to wander and wonder in there too. We strive to live in a society that embraces differences, and our work is about spaces of nuance and care.
How do you see your work impacting larger conversations in the theatre community and society overall, going beyond entertainment?
I am a first-generation migrant from a post-soviet country, geographically in south-eastern Europe. While there is a great number of people with a heritage similar to mine, artists broadly like me remain rarely seen on British stages. By this very fact, ours contributes to a discourse of inclusion and diversity. We all have a very long way to go, but I dearly hope, that our work presents an opportunity to further dialogues into a territory of nuance, complexity and understanding.
Are there any new artistic methods, themes or ideas you’re excited to explore in future projects?
Our work is interdisciplinary. We use everything at our disposal and really play about with form. For us, that means that sometimes we feel the best way to say what we want is in the form of a live show; other times it may be a publication, an installation or an audio walk. Every project we undertake looks different because we love learning new things and asking ourselves: “What is the best form for this new work to have the impact we want it to have?” Next, we may make a short film because [we believe] it may be the best way to share our thoughts on hope.
What’s coming up for you? Any exciting projects or collaborations in the works?
Well, there is one more show of 40/40 in the UK, in Leeds in July with Yorkshire Dance’s Ageless Festival, and something exciting is coming up at the end of summer abroad. So 40/40 is still gently rolling on. But a new work is being developed called Hope & Ponies—an installation exploring hope and resilience in a time of global turmoil with an artist based in Kyiv. And you know, there are one or two other things on the stove gently simmering too, so watch this space @2destlang and @KatherinaRadeva on Instagram.
40/40 will be performed on 13 July at Leeds City College Theatre as part of Ageless Festival 2024.
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Words by Khushboo Malhotra
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