PQ’s journey from an exhibition to a festival

Since the beginning of PQ in the late 1960s until about the turn of the millennium, exhibitions of models, sketches of designs, performance photographs presented the international developments in scenography and were central to the Prague Quadrennial Exhibitions.

Since 2003, more and more countries have been bringing exhibitions that included performative elements, drew the viewer into new imaginary spaces, and turned audiences into active participants. The festival that gradually emerged around the main exhibitions from these impulses has grown in size and popularity. Both of these developments opened PQ to other art professions and showed the multidisciplinary nature of performance design/scenography.

The 2023 edition will recognize the need to experience performance design/scenography in its performative format: live and with audience engagement. Our recognition of these predominant trends has led us to rename PQ a festival rather than an exhibition.