Inside this unauthorised pharmacy is a humanoid robot – inspired by seminal robotics researcher Hiroshi Ishiguro’s Geminoid-F robot – that talks to visitors about various drugs, painkillers, and antidepressants used to affect our emotional realities by altering the serotonin and dopamine levels in our brains. With its combination of robotics and drugs, the work points to the transitions, entanglements, and overlaps between the synthetic/artificial and the natural/biological. Visitors are introduced to the potentials and threats of medical and robotic technologies that we use to change, recollect, escape, and expand ourselves, or to seek something beyond our current humanity. Where are the demarcations between humans and machines when we are constantly optimising and adapting ourselves through complex technologies?

Access and Hygiene Rules

The installation is free of charge, however access is granted by picking up a waiting number from the on-site attendant. Access is granted to maximum two persons at a time, from the same household. Timeslot duration: 20 min. FFP2 masks must be worn when inside the installation, and when waiting in line to enter. A transcript of the humanoid robot's dialogue may be provided upon request. Please email us at accessibility(at)ctm-festival.de.

Concept: Dries Verhoeven
Production: Studio Dries Verhoeven
Dramaturgy: Hella Godee
Creation of humanoid: Chris Creatures Filmeffects
Digital puppeteering Stefano Trambusti
Assistant Director:  Bart van de Woestijne
Voice: Annie Saunders
Sound: Jimi Zoet
Understudy: Yurie Umamoto
Costume: Saskia Schoenmaker
Production: Olga Godschalk
Production Assistant: Jennifer Welts
Technique: Roel Evenhuis
Intern: Charles Pas
Software: Sylvain Vriens
Graphics: Julia Berg

»Happiness« was commissioned by SPRING Festival Utrecht and the NDSMwerf Foundation, Amsterdam. The installation was made possible with the support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Fonds Podiumskunsten, BPD Cultuurfonds, Fonds Fentener van Vlissingen, stimuleringsfonds creatieve industrie, Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst and BNG Cultuurfonds.