Campus #31 “Talking about right-wing extremism”

Workshop 1
Theatre between research, reality and the stage
with Enes Şahin and Christine Umpfenbach

On 22 July 2016, an 18-year-old man shot and killed nine people at the Olympia Shopping Centre (OEZ) in Munich for racist reasons: Armela, Can, Dijamant, Guiliano, Hüseyin, Roberto, Sabine, Selçuk and Sevda. Almost all of those murdered were born and raised in Munich. Six of the nine victims were Muslim, one was Roma and one was Sinto.

How can such an event be addressed on stage? Which stories are told, which voices are given a platform, and how does one deal with documentary material and the perspectives of those affected?

These are the questions addressed by ‘Offene Wunde’ (‘Open Wound’), a collaborative work by director Christine Umpfenbach and actor Enes Şahin at the Munich Volkstheater. This documentary theatre piece tells the story from the perspective of the relatives of those killed in the OEZ attack.

Using texts, images, research material and improvisation, the workshop explores how social reality can be made visible on stage, what responsibilities this entails, and what the tools of theatre can achieve in this context.

Workshop 2
The Archive as a Tool: The Politics of Sound in Public Space
with Talya Feldman

This workshop explores the role of sound as a political and social tool for remembrance, justice and change. Through listening sessions and discussions centred on voice, music and recorded soundscapes, we will examine how we can overcome or challenge structures of power. We ask ourselves: Who and what is amplified in public spaces, and who and what is silenced? How is sound used to make communities affected by far-right violence visible, or to suppress them? You will learn the basics, tools and platforms for sound composition and will be able to create your own sound collages. No prior knowledge of sound design is required. Bringing a laptop is strongly recommended.