Cumernustag

A holiday that never existed is resurrected. An occasion to celebrate the self-empowerment of a woman who grew beard overnight, a feast where sacrifices will be offered and blood sausage will be eaten. A gathering to challenge and overcome gender inequality and repression in sensuous fashion and to scrutinise fiction and tradition. 

Together with the Covenant of the Cumernus Virgins, Sara-Lisa will celebrate CUMERNUSTAG during the WIENWOCHE 2021 – Back to Normality, to honour a woman who applied willpower and magic to reclaim her own sexuality and free will. 

The fictitious CUMERNUSTAG draws inspiration from the legend of Saint Kümmernis and is firmly rooted in the religious feast day customs of the Bregenzerwald. Central stage is assigned to the development and revival of the ornate traditional costume of the Bregenzerwald women, the Juppe. 

2021 marks the first ever celebration of this new feast day which offers an opportunity to reflect on existing customs and societal actions while simultaneously drawing on established insignia and remaining open to change.

Ceremonial procedures as performed during traditional holidays can and will be scrutinised, re-evaluated and viewed from a different perspective. In the context of CUMERNUSTAG this means turning the veneration of the virgin woman on its head and celebrating female strength and resilience instead. Rather than demure and devotional, the proceedings will be loud, luscious and life-affirming. 

The cast consists of a core team of professional performers and a number of actors and actresses sourced in Vienna who identify themselves with the content of the performance. 
The artists involved will support participants in workshops aiming to promote body and voice awareness and approaches to performative presence. Spectators on that day will turn into active participants as they follow the procession before being invited to take a seat at the festive table.