Episode 8 - Prague Quadrennial: Immersion, Infrastructure and the Scenography of the Unseen + Pond Life by Elyne Quan

In this episode, Ian and Vanesa return from the Prague Quadrennial Symposium, Performing Exhibitions, Curating Scenographies, held at ARCHA+ in Prague from April 13–15, 2026. Gathering more than seventy speakers from around the world in the lead-up to PQ's 60th-anniversary edition in 2027, the symposium explored the rich interconnections between contemporary scenographic practice, curating and exhibition-making.Ian and Vanesa share their experience delivering a Flash Talk — The Venue as Scenographic Apparatus: Curating Infrastructure, Absence, and Performance — which drew on their work at Venue 13 to argue that venue-making is itself a scenographic practice shaped by the unseen. They reflect on Clémence Farrell's opening keynote, Immersion in the Exhibition Space, and the symposium's threads around immersive design, digital technologies and audience engagement.Beyond the symposium, they talk about a rather eventful side of the trip: an unplanned stop at Motol University Hospital after Ian came down with a nasty ear infection — a moment that turned into a genuine shout-out to the Czech public health system.The episode wraps with a round-up of theatre and performance happening in Edinburgh this April and May, and closes with a reading from the Climate Change Theatre Action anthology.