Visual language of decadence: Photographing the Final Runs of Müller - Život na 2 ťahy

Before “behind the scenes” became an everyday phrase, it was a physical place. Recently, I had the chance to experience it in its truest, original meaning. Right in the theatre.

When designer Pavol Dendis invited me to photograph the final runs of the play Müller - Život na 2 ťahy, he described its visual language in a single word: decadence.
No pressure capturing that.

What the audience sees on stage is always just the final piece. But stepping behind the curtain, or more like in the wings and behind the set panels, it finally made complete sense why the idiom stayed with us. There is an entire unseen world where the visible one is built piece by piece. It takes dozens of people (I met at least 50 just during rehearsals) fastening coats, checking props and syncing transitions, all to make the art exist. This is what draws me to BTS photography the most. The people and the work you never see.

And the art here is deeply intentional. The costumes are not traditional. They are minimal, almost civilian pieces that carry the weight of a biography. As Pavol recently noted for Vogue, shape becomes an emotional language. A recurring leather coat or a strict shoulder can suggest hardness, while softer lines reveal sincerity. Every detail, down to the shade of red or the way an actor holds a handbag, supports the story without overshadowing the person wearing it.

Here is a look behind the curtain with a few shots where I tried to capture at least some of the unseen effort.