What happens when the body enters a digital system and becomes part of its disruption? This is what a new site-specific installation at the Rialto Theatre explores, presented by visual artist and performer Suzana Phialas. The project was developed through the Theatre’s Associate Artist in Residence 2026 Programme and is about to premiere.

From September 4 to 6, visitors will be invited beneath the stage and into a cold, raw and unexpected part of the theatre, where choreography, technology and architecture intersect. Moving away from the red velvet and conventional experience of theatrical viewing, the LUX_KILL installation transforms the understage into a responsive digital environment.

At the centre of the installation are three dismantled monitors displaying an algorithmic body that reacts to the physical presence of visitors. As they enter and move through the space, their physical mass interferes with the local network, triggering real-time visual distortions and frame-rate collapses. The spectator is therefore not a passive observer, but an active force within the work.

LUX_KILL opens this Friday, September 4 at 7pm. It is a walk-in event with free admission, suitable for ages 12 and above. On the opening night, the artist will be present at the theatre’s outdoor bar area to meet and talk to visitors.

On September 5 and 6, the theatre understage will welcome visitors from 6pm to 10pm. The installation includes flickering lighting and low-frequency audio and takes place in a dark environment.

Developed during Phialas’ residency at Rialto Theatre, the installation emerged through a process of construction, testing, failure, rebuilding and experimentation. Working closely with the theatre’s technical and production teams, the artist has used the architecture and infrastructure of the understage as an integral part of the work.

Phialas’ wider practice explores the relationship between movement, digital technologies, artificial intelligence and the physical body. She approaches AI as a creative collaborator, investigating how algorithms learn from human experience and how their distortions can reflect back the complexities of the world that feeds them. With LUX_KILL, this ongoing exploration takes a site-specific and physical form.

LUX_KILL

Installation by Suzana Phialas. September 4-6. Rialto Theatre, Limassol. Opening night: 7pm. Saturday-Sunday: 6pm-10pm. Free admission. Suitable for ages 12+. www.rialto.com.cy