Mario Banushi’s wordless play 'Mami' leads Under the Radar in New York

Mario Banushi’s wordless, image-driven piece “Mami,” created in 2025, is leading the Under the Radar festival in New York and will be presented at N.Y.U. Skirball from Jan. 7 to Jan. 10. The opening moments of “Mami,” described in coverage, include a barking dog, a woman screaming in childbirth and an elderly woman being undressed, washed and fed — a dreamlike collage that evokes mothers and children, adolescence and old age.

The production was a hit at the Avignon Festival last year, and Under the Radar — which runs Jan. 7–25 with 38 shows at 24 venues across the city — imported it for this season. Mark Russell, the festival’s founder and artistic director, called Banushi “a singular voice,” saying he first heard about the director “through my spies in Europe,” and Jay Wegman of N.Y.U.

Skirball said Banushi’s no-text, image-driven approach felt unlike most U.S. drama. Banushi, who is 26 and Greek-Albanian, made “Mami” after a string of intimate works and said he had not traveled beyond Albania and Greece until 2023, when his earlier piece “Goodbye Lindita” began receiving invitations abroad.

He described working without text as an instinct — “Words can limit things,” he said — and said his pieces often begin with visual ideas, music and improvisation; he also described discarding much of what is created in rehearsal. “Mami” will run at N.Y.U. Skirball Jan. 7–10 as part of the festival’s Jan.

Key Topics

Culture, Mario Banushi, Mami, Nyu Skirball, Avignon Festival, Greece