Suzana Phialas to present LUX_KILL installation at Rialto Theatre

Limassol, Cyprus. Visual artist and performer Suzana Phialas will present LUX_KILL, a site-specific installation developed through Rialto Theatre’s Associate Artist in Residence 2026 Programme, from September 4 to 6.

The work will transform the theatre’s understage into a responsive digital environment where visitors’ movements trigger real-time visual distortions.

Interactive understage environment

Visitors will enter the theatre’s understage, a cold and raw area beneath the main stage, where choreography, technology and architecture intersect.

The installation features three dismantled monitors displaying an algorithmic body that reacts to visitors’ physical presence. As people enter and move through the space, their physical mass interferes with the local network, causing visual distortions and frame-rate collapses.

The work places visitors as active participants rather than passive observers.

Residency development

LUX_KILL was developed during Phialas’ residency at Rialto Theatre through construction, testing, failure, rebuilding and experimentation.

Working with the theatre’s technical and production teams, Phialas incorporated the architecture and infrastructure of the understage into the installation.

Her wider practice examines the relationship between movement, digital technologies, artificial intelligence and the physical body. She uses AI as a creative collaborator to explore how algorithms learn from human experience and how distortions can reflect the complexities of the world that informs them.

Visitor information

The installation will open on Friday, September 4, at 7pm. Phialas will be at the theatre’s outdoor bar area on the opening night to meet visitors.

On September 5 and 6, the installation will be open from 6pm to 10pm. Admission is free and the event is suitable for people aged 12 and above.

The installation includes flickering lighting, low-frequency audio and a dark environment.