Symposium

The content on this page was translated automatically.

Symposium on theater and participation

High culture seems tense. Through permanent self-renewal, it is trying to evade increasing economization, which leaves both audiences and artists exhausted. What alternatives are conceivable here? And where is it possible to meet creatively beyond the pressure to perform and innovate? How can collectivity and participation be emphasized more artistically than before? The symposium asks for pragmatic solutions. Lectures, discussions and practical offers will alternate. For one day, the Theaterakademie will be turned into an experimental place of exploration for more participation and accessibility - also in terms of space.

Program (The program in simple language can be found at the bottom of this page)

11 a.m. - Welcome
Leonard Kaiser, Benjamin Sprick, Sabina Dhein

11.30 - Keynote workshop
Kai van Eikels - The Shoals of Relaxation and the Power of the Weaker

What does it mean for art to be in the position of the weaker party in the face of government power backed by the police and the military and in the face of the power of the manufactured that the corporate economy has over life? What artistic strategies can be developed from an awareness of weakness - not through efforts to compensate, but by engaging with the effectiveness of weaknesses? I would like to examine the format of the workshop from the perspective of these questions. The workshop, I hypothesize, picks people up by their weaknesses, brings them together under the sign of weakness (for something, through something)
, dispenses with strong institutional structures itself and instead makes use of the dynamics of social adaptation to something gently suggested. Collective engagement in relaxation can have powerful effects in workshops, both uplifting and abysmal. The keynote will venture a short journey into the depths of relaxation, and if interested, we can then experiment with the workshop format together.

13-14 hrs Lunch break

14:00 - Input and discussion
Anna Teuwen - Accessibility as theatrological practice

How does a theater open up and for whom? Who should, may or can participate? In an open audience discussion with Anna Teuwen, dramaturge at Kampnagel, we will discuss accessibility from the perspective of a theatre as well as the organization and curation of festivals. We will talk about best practices and concrete formats such as relaxed performance. What are the logistical, architectural, social etc. challenges? What are the logistical, architectural, social, etc. challenges, potentials and insights from practice? How can they be applied to other institutions in a constructive, creative and forward-looking way? Which developments can we build on?

3 p.m. - Book presentation
Jule Govrin - Ping Pong to Radical Equality

The more threatening the world situation becomes, the more we realize how much we depend on each other globally. But although we are all vulnerable, vulnerability is unequally distributed. But how can inequality be thought of in terms of bodies? Jule Govrin examines debt and austerity policies in her new book Universalism from Below. A Theory of Radical Equality (Suhrkamp 2025), Jule Govrin examines how people are made unequal through forms of differential exploitation. Together with us, she embarks on a search for lived equality in the present between theater practice and philosophical
theory. Equality does not appear here as a distant ideal, but as a precarious practice that places concern for one another in the foreground.

5 p.m. - Gathering, snacks, drinks

Small stage
Film screening in a relaxed setting
Participatory experiments with temporality
Open access, informal discourse

Program in simple language

Meetings about theater and participation

Culture with its high standards is very tense. It is constantly trying to reinvent itself. In doing so, it wants to defend itself against the ever stronger connection between art and money. This makes audiences and artists very tired. Are there other ways? Where can we meet creatively, without pressure and without always having to create something new? How can we do more together and participate more in art? The meeting is looking for solutions that really work. There will be talks, discussions and practical activities. For one day, the Theater-Schule will become a place where we try out more participation and accessibility.

11 a.m. - Say hello
Leonard Kaiser, Benjamin Sprick, Sabina Dhein

11.30 - Important workshop

Kai van Eikels - The dangers of relaxation and the power of the weaker Art is often weaker than the government and big companies. What does this mean for art? What artistic paths are there when we realize that we are weak? Not by making an effort, but by engaging with the effect of weakness. I would like to talk about this in this workshop. A workshop can pick people up with their weaknesses, bring them together and dispense with strong rules. Instead, we use the dynamic of social adaptation to something gently suggested. Engaging in relaxation together in workshops can have powerful effects, both uplifting and abysmal. The keynote will take a short journey into the depths of relaxation, and
afterwards we can experiment with the workshop format together.

13-14 Lunch break

14:00 - Input and discussion
Anna Teuwen - Accessibility as a theater practice

How does a theater open up and for whom? Who should, may or can participate? Anna Teuwen, dramaturge at Kampnagel, talks to us about this. We talk about good examples and concrete formats such as relaxed performances. What are the challenges, opportunities and lessons learned in practice? How can they also be useful, creative and forward-looking for other institutions? What developments can we build on?

3 p.m. - Book presentation
Jule Govrin - Ping Pong to radical equality

The world is a threatening place. We realize how much we depend on each other. But while we are all vulnerable, some are more vulnerable than others. How can we think about inequality from the perspective of bodies? In her new book, Jule Govrin explores how people are made unequal through different kinds of exploitation. Together we search for lived equality in the present between theater practice and philosophical theory. Equality is not a distant ideal here, but an uncertain practice that foregrounds caring for one another.

5 p.m. - TreJen, snacks, drinks

Small stage
Film screening in a relaxed atmosphere
Experiments with time
Open access, informal discourse

With contributions from
Jule Govrin, Kai van Eikels and many more.

Contributors
Leonard Kaiser
Dr. Benjamin Sprick
Participants of the seminar of the same name in the winter semester 2024/25 at the TAH

Eintritt frei

sponsored by the Thörl Foundation.