‘Probably a lot of people remember the blue, mutant opera singer in the ultramodern astronautical environment in ‘The Fifth Element’. Even though the space age has not yet arrived, it takes at least ten years for performances like Ágens’ solo opera to become usual and accepted. […]

Tenebrae practically consists of gestures. Krisztián Gergye’s special choreography blends Javanese dance with the elements of provocative contemporary dance and costumes, or nudity substituting the costumes. The dancers play with the amorphous distortion of their bodies by making use of the effects of sidelighting. Meanwhile, Ágens’ continuously distorting voice, moving between extremes of dynamics and height, removes us from the theatrical surroundings throughout. The ethereal vibration, the metaphysical position and the special intonation put so much pressure on our minds (during the not-so-long performance) that we become exhausted for weeks in the pessimistic dusk. This is a kind of reaction to our age, a prophecy with horrible visions of decline. Ágens is crawling into the middle of the stage as a worm, while we are listening to the cry of fear – is this really what is ahead of us?’

Zoltán Végsô : The Female line, Íva Bittová and Ágens in the Trafó, Balkon 2002/10