PRESS KIT

2013 - 2015

A project developed under the umbrella of the European Theatre Convention

under the patronage of the artist Etel Adnan

With the support of the Culture Programme of the European Union

in collaboration with

Staatstheater Braunschweig, Germany Teatrul National Craiova, Romania

Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Germany

Teatrul National Timisoara, Romania

Gavella City Theatre Zagreb, Croatia

Theater und Orchester Heidelberg, Germany

Slovak National Theatre Bratislava, Slovakia

Deutsches Theater Berlin , Germany

www.artofageing.eu

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Contents

1. About The Art of Ageing ............................................................................. 3 2. The Art of Ageing Co-Productions ............................................................ 5 3. Irgendwann in der Nacht, written by Etel Adnan ................................... 24 4. The conference .......................................................................................... 27 5. About the European Theatre Convention ............................................... 28

6. Contacts ..................................................................................................... 28

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1. About “The Art of Ageing” “An ageing population raises challenges for our societies and economies, culturally, organizationally and

from an economic point of view. Policy makers worry about how living standards will be affected as each

worker has to provide for the consumption needs of a growing number of elderly dependents. Markets

worry about fiscal sustainability and the ability of policy makers to address timely and sufficiently these

challenges in several Member States. The seriousness of the challenge depends on how our economies

and societies respond and adapt to these changing demographic conditions.”1

The European Theatre Convention initiates the project “The Art of Ageing” under the patronage of

the artist Etel Adnan (87) and the support of the Culture Programme of the European Union with the

aim to:

- INITIATE THE DEBATE between artists, scientists, political & economical stakeholders and audiences

about demographic challenges addressing younger and older generations alike

- RAISE AWARENESS to the political, social, biological and economic challenges of our ageing

societies

- ENCOURAGE all generations to take active part in society life

Eight renowned national state and city theatres from four countries – Staatstheater Braunschweig,

Teatrul National Craiova, Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Teatrul National Timisoara, Gavella City Theatre

Zagreb, Theater und Orchester Heidelberg, Slovak National Theatre Bratislava and Deutsches Theater

Berlin commission 4 young talented European playwrights (lvor Martinić, from Croatia, Nino Haratischwili from Germany, Silke Merzhäuser, Werkgruppe 2, from Germany, and Peca Stefan from

Romania) to realize research and interviews about the phenomena of Europe’s ageing societies and to

write 4 new plays staged in five new stage productions performed by multicultural ensemble from

each theatre.

The five new productions will be shared and toured between the participating theatres and showcased

during the “ Art of Ageing - 1st European Theatre and Science Festival” from April 16-19, 2015 at the Teatrul National Timisoara, Romania with a scientific symposium to pool artists, audiences, political and economic stake holders. On October 17th 2013, the project started with the premiere of the play “Irgendwann in der nacht” at the Staatstheater Karlsruhe written by Etel Adnan, about the oneness of love. Two lovers meet after

years of separation, they talk about their past, their memories, the time that is now lost.

On the occasion of the Art of Ageing conference that took place from March 13 to March 16 2014 at Théâtre de Liège in Belgium, a combined staged reading of the play in French and German and a

screening of extracts of the stage production were performed. The playwrights of the project were

invited to share the first results of their research and interviews realized in the last 7 months.

1 “The 2012 Ageing Report - Economic and budgetary projections for the 27 EU Member States (2010-2060)”, European

Union - Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs, 2012”

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1. „ Timisoara National Theatre (RO) – Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe (DE) Pe ceas / Die Uhr tickt / The clock is ticking

Peca Stefan interviewed people in Germany, considered to be one of the pillar of the European

economy and Romania, the reminder of communism in permanent transition. He observed

unimaginable similarities but also striking differences in the way people relate to ageing. The final play

will reflect on those stories and invite the audience to witness the ageing of the performance.

2. Deutsches Theater Berlin (DE) – Slovenske Narodne Divadlo (SK) Bludička / Land der ersten Dinge / Fen Fires

The award-winning German-Georgian novelist, playwright and theatre director Nino Haratischwili wrote

a multilingual play for one German and two Slovak actors: Lara from the West, a former judge, diseased

and in need of care, and Natalia from the East, a former musician who is taking care of Lara - two

women with rather different life stories try to manage their daily routines, but are caught up by their

memories and forced to face up to the shadows of the past.

3. National Theatre Craiova (RO) — Staatstheater Braunschweig (DE) Căpşunile şi Orfanii / Erdbeerwaisen / Strawberry Orphans

Werkgruppe2, a collective of artists from Germany interviewed children and their grandparents in

Romania, whose parents went to Germany and Western Europe as migrant workers. In Romania

migrant workers are often called “strawberry pickers”. Based on those interviews, a multilingual

documentary theatre production is created.

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4. Theater und Orchester Heidelberg (DE) — Gavella City Drama Theatre Zagreb (HR) I am afraid that we know each other now / Ich befürchte, jetzt kennen wir uns / Bojim se da sada

poznajemo

The Croatian writer Ivor Martinić together with the German director, Miriam Horwitz, are researching

how memory is being experienced in different generations, what it means for collective and personal

identity, how memory is a part of our relationships, family, the political situation and our communities.

8 premieres in 4 countries

Timisoara 07.09.14

Craiova 27.09.14

Karlsruhe 03.10.14

Braunschweig 23.10.14

Berlin 14.11.14

Bratislava 27.11.14

Heidelberg 16.11.14

Zagreb 16.01.15

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2. The Art of Ageing Co-Productions

2.1 Staatstheater Karlsruhe (DE) - Timisoara National Theatre (RO)

The renowned Romanian playwright Peca Stefan interviewed people in Germany, considered to be one

of the pillar of the European economy and in Romania, the reminder of communism in permanent

transition. He observed unimaginable similarities but also striking differences in the way people relate to

ageing. The final play will reflect on those stories and invite the audience to witness the ageing of the

performance.

The team Playwright: Peca Stefan Stage director: Malte C Lachmann Dramaturge: Michael Gmaj Project manager: Jan Linders and Geanina Jinaru Video artist: Lucian Matei Stage and costume designer: Anna van Leen

Cast: Sabina Bijan / Sophia Löffler / Jan Andreesen / Colin Buzoianu

Peca Stefan (1982), playwright, based in Romania PECA ŞTEFAN is considered one of the most powerful voices in Romanian

contemporary playwriting. He studied dramatic writing at New York

University (2003), was a resident of the Royal Court International Residency

(2005) and CEC ArtsLink Playwright in Residence at the Long Wharf

Theatre in New Haven (2007, 2008). He was the winner of the first

dramAcum contest in Romania, in 2002. His work has been presented in

many European countries and in the United States and his plays were often

rewarded (Heidelberg Stuckemarkt Innovation Award (2007) for Romania 21

and the London Fringe Report Award for Best Play – Relationship Drama

(2006) for The Sunshine Play). He was also one of the 5 European

Plawyrights selected in the Berliner Theatertreffen Stuckemarkt 2010, with “Wire and Acrobats”. In

2012, the production of his play “Targoviste de Jucarie” (Playground Targoviste) was showcased during

the festival New Plays from Europe in Wiesbaden. He was invited to be one of the 35 European

playwrights featured in the 35th Anniversary Edition of the Berliner Stückemarkt in May 2013.

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Malte C. Lachmann (1989), stage director, based in Germany

Malte C. Lachmann was born in Marburg, Germany, in 1989. He

studied stage directing for theatre and opera at Bavarian Theatre

Academy August Everding and University of Music and Performing

Arts Munich from 2008 until 2012. During his studies, he was a

Cusanuswerk scholar, worked as assistant director at Salzburg

Festival and Prinzregenten Theatre Munich and as assistant to

conductor Michael Hofstetter. Additionally, he worked as director for

various professional theatre, opera and musical productions in Munich. In 2012, he won the jury's award

at Körber Studio Junge Regie and was named 'Best German Young Director'. After graduating, he

worked amongst others for Thalia Theatre Hamburg, Hanover State Theatre, Dresden State Theatre,

Bochum Theatre, Gießen Theatre and Osnabrück Theatre. In 2013, his project 'Toulouse Protocols' was

invited to Radikal Jung Festival. His work focuses on contemporary dramas as well as project

developments with a special interest in interdisciplinary concepts.

More information on Malte C. Lachmann's work can be found on www.lachmann.tk

Lucian Matei (1990), video artist, Romania

Born in 1990, Lucian Matei has already established a name for himself as an

extraordinarily creative video artist, specialising in video concepts, design and

animations, 3D projection mapping, video editing and post-processing, special

effects etc. He graduated at the Photo and Video Art School in Timisoara. His

works on experimental and borderline documentary film brought him several

awards such as the Jury Award - AMA Film Festival Otelu Rosu 2010 or Jecza

Gallery Award for Best Short Experimental Movie at the Video Art Exihibiton

2012. In the past 3 years, he has collaborated extensively with the Timisoara

National Theatre as well as with the Arad Classical Theatre „Ioan Slavici” on

video concept and design for the stage and theatre promotional trailers,

including “Our Town” by Thornton Wilder, “How I Became Stupid” by Martin Page, Cloaca by Maria

Goos, “Life is a Dream” by Calderón de la Barca.

Sabina Bijan, actress, based in Romania With a singing voice matched only by her acting skills, Sabina Bijan is a free-

lance actress, one of the regular collaborators of the Timișoara National

Theatre. She studied acting at the Faculty of Music and Drama of the West

University Timișoara. Sabina also studied singing and holds numerous awards

as a vocal singer. Her most recent performances include roles such as Colette

in The Jay Birds by Alexandru Kirițescu, directed by Ion-Ardeal Ieremia,

Esmeralda in Here is the Woman I Love by Camil Petrescu, directed by Mihaela

Lichiardopol, Ruth Şahaş in Yaacovi and Leidental by Hanoch Levin, directed by

Mihaela Lichiardopol, Margaret in edward based on Christopher Marlowe,

directed by Szabó K. István, Ina in The Dream based on Mircea Cărtărescu,

directed by Cătălina Buzoianu or Elaine in The Graduate by Terry Johnson, directed by Mihaela

Lichiardopol. Sabina Bijan also maked the directorial concept of performances such as The Actress by

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Irina Muhametova and Ilia Chlaki (2013), as well as No, I Don’t Regret a Thing (2011). Sabina Bijan also

signed the directorial concept of performances such as The Actress by Irina Muhametova and Ilia

Chlaki (2013), as well as No, I Don’t Regret a Thing (2011).

Colin Buzoianu (1979), actor, based in Romania A favourite of the audiences, Colin Buzoianu has been a long-time collaborator

of the Timișoara National Theatre. Born in Timișoara in 1979 and brought up

bilingually, in Romanian and German, he studied acting at the Faculty of Music

and Drama of the West University Timișoara, in the German Language

Department, followed by internships at the Academy for Music and Theatre

„Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” in Leipzig. In 2003 he studied theatre pedagogy

in Köln and Stuttgart. Previously a member of the regular ensemble of the

German State Theatre in Timișoara and the Timișoara National Theatre, he is

now a free-lance actor. A list of his most acclaimed roles includes Okeanus in

Prometheus Bound, directed by Kokan Mladenović, Astolfo in Life is a Dream,

directed by Mihai Măniuțiu, Ethan in the musical The Full Monty by Terrence McNally and David

Yazbek, Ștefan Tipătescu in A Lost Letter, directed by Ada Lupu. In 2013, Colin contributed to the stage

concept of the performance “Bash” by Neil LaBute.

Summary of the project by Peca Stefan :

The minute we’re born we start the process of ageing and becoming. Transformation and change, in a

perpetual conflict with the finite, and mortality, is how we invent ourselves, how we write the story of our

lives. While demographics unnoticeably shift to an unprecedented situation in world’s history, where the

elderly will be THE majority, on how we act and what rules we politically set in the present will be our

pillow for this new, uncharted world. People in two countries, one of the pillars of European economy

(Germany) and the other a remainder of communism in permanent transition (Romania), prince and

pauper, carry unimaginable similarities but also striking differences in the way they relate to ageing.

How are we living our current age? How do we imagine old age? How are we remembering previous

ages? How do we look at our present age? What are the actions of our passing, in terms of property,

eating habits, work ethics, political, civic and ecological attitude? What do we leave behind? What are

our dreams of the future?

Based on interviews conducted in Timișoara and Karlsruhe, an ever-circling succession of stories

addresses all of these questions through a revolving, innovative and engaging performance where

audiences step in for an hour to age together, by making the best (or worst) of this experience. The

actors, both Romanian and German, are the guides and players of this perishable meditation, perfectly

conscious they are aging along with their viewers. The audience is not merely a witness but a co-

participant in this process of consuming 60 minutes of their lives. Depending on the spectators’

response, scenes shift and change in order. No matter what, on the mark of the 60th minute, the show

will stop. Audiences will be rewarded if they tell the story of what they saw at the end of the

performance. The next performance will start with the enactment of the audience’s retelling of the

previous show. Each show will be a unique, perishable and memorable experience to the evening’s

viewers.

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2.2 Deutsches Theater Berlin (DE) - Slovenske Narodne Divadlo,

Bratislava (SK)

The award-winning Georgian novelist, playwright and theatre director Nino Haratischwili has been

invited to write a multilingual play on behalf of the Deutsches Theater and the Slovenske Nationalne

Divadlo. The play is written for one German and two Slovak actors - two elderly women, one from the

West, the other from the East, a dead child, a dead husband – different memories, stories, conflicts.

The team

Playwright: Nino Haratischwili, Germany

Dramaturges: Ulrich Beck, Miriam Kicinova, Peter Pavlac

Project managers: Radana Hromniková, Christa Müller Stage director: Brit Bartkowiak, Germany

Set designer: Nikolaus Frinke, Germany

Costume designer: Karin Rosemann, Germany

Music: Thies Mynther, Germany

Cast: Emília Vášáryová, Slovakia / Dušan Jamrich, Slovakia / Gabriele Heinz, Germany

Nino Haratischwili (1983), playwright, based in Germany

Nino Haratischwili was born in 1983 in Tbilisi, Georgia. She is an award-winning

novelist, playwright and theatre director and has been writing in Georgian and

German since the age of twelve. From 1998 to 2003 she ran the free, bilingual

theatre company (German, Georgian) "Fliedertheater" which had had several

appearances at various Georgian theaters as well as guest performances in

Germany (Bremen).

CALENDAR TIMISOARA / KARLSRUHE

2014 June 24 – July 20: Rehearsals Karlsruhe, Germany

August 25 – September 7: Rehearsals Timisoara, Romania

September 7: Premiere Timisoara, Romania

October 3: Premiere Karlsruhe, Germany

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From 2000 to 2003 she studied film directing at the State School for Film and Theatre in Tbilisi. From

2003 to 2007 she studied directing at the Theatre Academy in Hamburg, ITMF. Nino Haratischwili wrote

several prose texts and pieces which were published and performed both in Germany and in Georgia.

Her debut novel Juja was longlisted for the German Book Prize. Mein sanfter Zwilling (My Gentle Twin)

won the Hotlist German independent publishers’ best book award in 2011. Furthermore, she was a

writer-in-residence at the British Centre of Literary Translation’s summer school in July 2012. Nino

Haratischwili now works as a freelance director and author in Hamburg.

Brit Bartkowiak (1980), stage director, Germany

Brit Bartkowiak was born in 1980. She studied German Literature and Theatre Studies in Mainz and in Wellington / New Zealand. In 2006 she started her studies in Theatre Direction at the Academy of Music and Theatre in Hamburg. Her first works during her studies were: “Black animal sadness” by Anja Hilling in Hamburg and “Time to love, Time to die” by Fritz Kater in Dresden. From 2009 to 2013 she worked as an assistant director at the Deutsches Theater Berlin, cooperating, among others, with Dimiter Gotscheff, Nicolas Stemann and Stefan Pucher. In 2012 she directed the German -language premiere of “Swchwrm” by Toon Tellegen and Guy at the Schauspielhaus Düsseldorf . At the Deutsches Theater in Berlin, she directed among others : “Mother tongue Mameloschn” by

Marianna Salzmann, which was nominated for the award of the Mülheim Theatre Days 2013. In the season 2013/14 she is a director at the Deutsches Theater Berlin, the Staatstheater Oldenburg

and at the State Theatre of Lower Saxony North in Wilhelmshaven.

Nikolaus Frinke, set designer, Germany

Nikolaus Frinke was born in 1978 in Brühl/ Erftkreis. After finishing an

apprenticeship in carpenting he studied set and costume design at the National

Academy for Fine Arts (“Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste”) in

Stuttgart. Over the course of his studies, works for Wilhelma Theatre Stuttgart,

the Academy of Arts Theatre Stuttgart and the Stuttgart Ballet were developed.

Subsequently, he worked as a permanent assistant at Theatre Magdeburg,

Thalia Theatre Hamburg and Deutsches Theater Berlin. Since 2011 Frinke has

been working as an independent set and costume designer contracted by,

among others, Deutsches Theater Berlin, Theatre Düsseldorf (“Düsseldorfer

Schauspielhaus”) or the Hans-Otto-Theatre Potsdam. He was set designer for

“Winterreise” by Elfriede Jelinek, directed by Andreas Kriegenburg (Deutsches Theater Berlin, 2011)

and the production of “Muttersprache Mameloschn” by Marianna Salzmann, in which he collaborated

with director Brit Bartkowiak.

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Emília Vášáryová (1942), actress, Slovakia

A Slovak actress of the century, Emília Vášáryová who speaks Hungarian,

Slovak, and German represents the history and culture of Slovakia as well as

that of Central Europe. As an actress she was part of the most important period

of the Czechoslovak film, the Czechoslovak New Wave, that was founded by

quintessential personalities such as Miloš Forman, Věra Chytilová and Evald

Schorm. In the beginning she played fragile and lyrical characters (Natasha,

Helena, Roxane), later she characterized dominant roles (Antigona, Ifigenia,

Iokaste, Elizabeth), and then continued with destructive characters (Masha,

Estelle, Ellida Wangle, Maria Callas). However, she also embodied a normal aging Old Lady (Ionesco).

She is an actress of classical drama (August lost in Oklahoma) as well as of modern minimalism

(Rechnitz – Der Würgeengel). Together with her colleagues, through theatre, she did not only react to

politics of impediment but created an island for escape.

For the past thirty years she has been passing on her knowledge about theatre and her vision of acting

on to students of the performing arts.

Dušan Jamrich (1946), actor, Slovakia

Dušan Jamrich began his career by impersonating young, handsome,

committed and appealing men. Subsequently, he started playing the rough

Haimon, Orestea, Prince Fridrich-like characters that later turned into dramatic,

cynical and cruel Richard II., Solonyj, Henry of Wales, Richard III., Thomas

More and Montparnasse. Today, he is a mature and sensible Count of

Scerback, an authoritative and politically correct Menenius Agrippa but also a

repellent and perverse Father, or a corrupt and decadent Karamazov. That

these characters are so different from his natural persona underlines not only

his extensive experience but also the malleability of his talent and how natural

aging is linked with humility in the working process. He is a synonym for natural

aging of a talent.

While he was in charge of the SNT, he became a vice-president of the European Theatre Convention

(ETC), and co-organized the international festival Eurothalia 2002 in Bratislava. Dušan Jamrich

represents an entire epoch of the ETC itself.

Gabriele Heinz, actress, based in Germany

Gabriele Heinz was born in Vienna and studied at the Ernst Busch

School for Performing Arts in Berlin. In 1975 she made her debut at

the Deutsches Theater in Peter Hacks' Adam and Eve (directed by

Wolfgang Heinz). Gabriele Heinz worked repeatedly with directors

Wolfgang Langhoff, Alexander Lang, Wolfgang Heinz, Friedo Solter

and Thomas Ostermeier, and more recently with Michael Thalheimer, Dimiter Gotscheff, Amelie

Niermeyer and Jürgen Gosch. Her recent appearances include roles in Roland Schimmelpfennig's

stage adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, Michael Thalheimer's productions of The Nibelungs by

Friedrich Hebbel and Lonely Lives by Gerhart Hauptmann. Currently, Gabriele Heinz can be seen in

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Thalheimer's staging of Hauptmann's The Weavers and Brit Bartkowiak's production of Mother Tongue

Mameloschn, as well as in the Peter Hacks drama Anxieties and Power. Heinz also directed the DT

productions of The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion and Tilla by Christoph Hein.

Karin Rosemann, costume designer, Germany

Karin Rosemann was born in Munich in 1982. She studied fashion design in

Berlin and, after graduating, worked as a designer in New York and Berlin.

Since the season of 2010/11 she is employed as costume assistant by the

Deutsches Theater Berlin. Her works since that time include, among others,

“The Wild Horse under the Tiled Stove” (“Das Wildpferd unter’m Kachelofen”),

director: Brit Bartkowiak; “Everything” (“Alles”), director: Marike Moiteaux;

”Birds of Paradise” (“Paradiesvögel”), director: Alize Zandwijk.

Thies Mynther, musician, Germany

Thies Mynther, born in 1968, has been living in Hamburg and Berlin

since 1991. Since 1989 he has been a member of bands such as

“Phantom/Ghost”, “Superpunk” and “Stella”. Since 1995 Mynther

focussed on electronic sounds, in collaboration with Tobi Neumann

under the name “Glove” and has produced records “Chicks on

Speed” and “Miss Kittin”. Through his subsequent work as a

musician and composer for film scores and as a sound designer

(among others “Die Anruferin”, Wüstefilm and “Wie ich ein freier

Reisebegleiter wurde” by Jan Peters) his work gradually began to

shift toward one of his longstanding interests, musical theatre.

CALENDAR BERLIN / BRATISLAVA

2014

February: workshop, reading of the play

9-11 May: rehearsals in Bratislava with the whole team

October 27 – November 13: Rehearsals Deutsches Theater, Berlin, Germany

November 14: Premiere Deutsches Theater, Berlin, Germany

November 24-27: Rehearsals Slovak National Theatre, Bratislava, Slovakia

November 27: Premiere Slovak National Theatre, Bratislava, Slovakia

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Land der ersten Dinge by Nino Haratischwili

Excerpt from Scene 1 and 2

Lara – a former judge – tied to her bed. Each of her word is full of iron and she cannot handle the fact

that she has been bereft of her future. She hates television series she is looking, and refuses to accept

that times have become predictable, not only her life.

Natalia – Lara’s carer, a former organist, tied to the East she carries in her like a pacemaker.

A house ensheathed in dust and quiescence, hibernating, not knowing any longer how it feels to be

awake. Lara is lying in her bed, Natalia sitting next to her, both staring at the television.

Lara (thinking):

I have survived worse – I will survive her as well. Every morning these inane songs, as if I were gaga.

Natalia (thinking):

My name is Natalia – with an A at the end not an E – is not that bloody complicated, is it?

Lara (thinking):

„Dearie, just swallow the pills. Yes, great.“ As if I were a dog. With the same constant stupid grin on her

face, she would even mix rat poison in my meal. My bitch of a daughter! Why did she have to employ

such a cow? She only wants to punish me. Picks any old cow from any godforsaken country to torment

me. Mika, my beloved Darling, you are not like your mother, you would never do this to me, would you?

Natalia (thinking):

„No! Not the blue stockings! I have not worn them since 1978! THE BLACK ONES!“ Why doesn’t she

throw them away? How on earth should I know which stockings she wants to wear? 1978? Excuse me!

Old stockings shouldn’t survive their owner, they ought to be thrown away.

Lara (thinking):

I – yes I – should bake an apple crumble. Show her how make a proper apple crumble. With proper

crumble and cinnamon. Not this disgusting sugar concoction she gave me. You never wanted to eat

your vegetables, my Mika. God knows how I tried to make you eat them. I was so ingenious – my God –

I was so ingenious.

Natalia (thinking):

Not one single photo. Not one single photograph in the whole house. What is that? A house without

photos. Mrs Gendig – even if she wasn’t the epitome of a granny, she had pictures of her children, her

grandchildren everywhere ... My God, when is this stupid television series starting ...

Lara (thinking):

A sweet, old, toothless grandma that’s what they want. Someone who offers everyone her jam recipes,

one who cries each time she watches a love story on telly, someone who says : „All the best“ to

everyone; one, who even on her deathbed smiles and whispers: I had such a fulfilled life, now I am

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ready to die and to join you, My God!“ But they have another one coming! They have a screw loose! Let

her tell my daughter – the high and mighty Professor!

Natalia (thinking):

No one ever comes to see her, not even her own daughter dares calling her. No wonder! She is a

termagant. Compared to her, Mrs Gendig was a godsend. And she still goes on and on about her boy,

„my grandson, my darling grandson“. But where is he? Where is he, her precious Mika?

Tomorrow at 12, wasn’t it? Yes, tomorrow at 12 I can finally call him, the lawyer said. I will hear it in his

voice if they treat him well!

Lara (thinking):

Yes! Mika, when we finally leave! This will be so much fun! I remember you always wanting me to teach

you Poker and Black Jack. In my prime, I used to outact those boring old farts. A jazzy car and us at the

wheel – splendid. Why is she bloody staring at me? Does she expect me to return her smile? Give me a

break, sweetie!

Natalia (thinking):

Who does she think she is? I am going to explode in a second and scream into her face. Yes, I should

do this – she would at least stop staring at me. Just to get up, to throw her fucking vase on the floor, tear

down those smelly curtains, jump on them, and to stuff the biscuits she oogles into her bloody gob ...

Finally the programme!

...

Lara: Natalie?

Natalia (thinking):

A! A! Natalia. My God, why is this so difficult?

Natalia: Shall I straighten your pillow?

Lara: No! Leave it!

Natalia: But you can’t see properly.

Lara: Don’t you understand? I said NO, and a NO is a NO!

Natalia: I just wanted ...

Lara: What? Help?

Natalia: I want you to be comfortable.

Lara: I shall only be comfortable once my grandson arrives and takes me away from here.

Then I will be comfortable! Whom were you talking to on the phone?

Natalia: With my son.

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Lara: And what does junior do?

Natalia: He is at unversity – studying.

Lara: And what does he want to become one day?

Natalia: He – he wants to be in economics, but he will probably change his mind again. He is

rather – how shall I put it – restless.

Lara: Economics. Sure! You Eastern folks all think we live in paradise ...

2.3 Staatstheater Braunschweig (DE) - National Theatre Craiova (RO)

Strawberry-Orphans/ Erdbeerwaisen/ Căpşunile şi Orfanii

Both theatres will conduct their research process under the title “Strawberry Orphans” based on the

growing phenomenon of the labour migration of Romanian women to Germany or other western

European countries. Intention is to develop a joint theatre documentary play with a mixed cast on stage

from both theatre ensembles as well as the werkgruppe2 artist research group.

Many women from poorer countries such as Romania, the poorest EU-country, emigrate to Western

Europe. In Romania `Picking` has become synonymic for every job women and men are doing in the

West: picking strawberries, cleaning, taking care for elder and youngest people, working in meat-

markets or dockyards. They are sending their wages back to the families they left behind (often

including their own children and elderly relatives), they become significantly interlinked to the economy

of both countries.

Now the elderly relatives are again the generation who cares for the children and who has to bear

responsibility for their social, emotional and political education. The idea what retirement could be is

totally different from all modern comforts of german pensioners. What are these new family structures

which emerge from the demand for work?

Yet at what emotional and psychological cost? The theatres in Craiova and Braunschweig will research

the effects that labour migration from Romania has on the family members depending on and missing

them at home. The performance will be staged with actors from both countries and they will change

language for the performances in Romania and Germany respectively.

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The team

Stage director: Julia Roesler

Music: Kim Efert

Stage and costume designer: Adrian Damian

Dramaturges: Silke Merzhäuser, Axel Preuß

Cast: Gabriela Baciu, Romania / Gina Calinoiu, Romania / Sven Hönig, Germany / Oliver Simon, Germany

Werkgruppe 2, a collective team of theatre artists born end of the 1970s, based in Germany

Werkgruppe 2 is a collective team of theatre artists born in the late 1970s, based in Germany. For more than eight years werkgruppe2 has been working as an independent drama group. Werkgruppe2 is an independent interdisciplinary theatre collective based in Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 2006, the team consists of Julia Roesler (director), lnsa Rudolph (music) and Silke Merzhäuser (dramaturge). Their first theatre projects had a literary basis (Gaming

Instinct, The Orange Girl, Borderliners). Werkgruppe2 has been developing evening length documentary theatre based on interviews since 2009. Once the interviews are compressed into a script or theatrical text it is staged with professional actors and music ensembles. Always edge cutting, they look for new forms of dialogue between the various art disciplines in each project. Aside from its own productions, werkgruppe2 realized projects in cooperation with the Deutsches

Theater in Göttingen, works together with the Staatstheater Oldenburg and is a partner of the

Staatstheater Braunschweig from 2013 to 2015.

Gina Calinoiu, (1978), actress, Romania

Born in Filiasi, Romania, in 1978 Gina has been a member of the

regular ensemble of the National Theatre of Craiova since 2001. In

addition, she has worked as an acting teacher with the arts

department of the University of Craiova for two years. While

developing her artistic career with the National Theatre Gina was

also keen to improve and broaden her professional skills and, for this

reason, became actively involved in both theoretical and practical

artistic research. Her PhD thesis, based on Jerzy Grotowski’s work,

brought her the opportunity to work and collaborate with some of the

most famous theatre makers, such as Anatoly Vassiliev, Eugenio Barba and Thomas Richards. Gina

lives in Craiova.

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Gabriela Baciu, actress, Romania

Gabriela Baciu graduated from IATC in Bucharest in 1989 and

has, since that time, been employed at TNCM. In 2009 she

received her PhD in drama. Baciu has played in various well-

known plays at TEATRUL NAŢIONAL „MARIN SORESCU”

CRAIOVA, among many others in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet,

directed by Tompa Gabor. She has appeared on television in

entertainment programs and feature films for children and has

been a part of many movies and radio broadcasts. At the National Film Festival Costineşti in 1989 she

won the Award for Debut for the role of Aglae Argintat in the movie "Last Ball in November" and, in

2005, received the TVR International Award.

Sven Hönig, actor, Germany

Sven Hönig, born in 1977, graduated from the »Ernst-Busch«

Academy for Dramatic Arts in Berlin. During his studies he worked

alongside Peter Zadek and Manfred Karge. Afterwards he was

engaged at the Maxim Gorki Theater, the Schaubühne Berlin and

the Staatstheater Cottbus where he worked, among others, with

stage directors Christoph Schroth, Allejandro Quintana and Wolf

Bunge. In 2005 he was touring with the theatre company

»fliegende fische« (»flying fishes«) through Nepal and India. After his return he continued touring

through Germany with »fliegende fische« and three other programs. Particularly the program »Götter

Guru Germany« has been received with great enthusiasm by audience and press. In addition to his

theatre work Sven Hönig is also a passionate film actor. He was the lead in »Der Puppengräber« and

appeared in the cinema films »Krabat« and »Die Päpstin«. Since 2010/2011 he has been engaged at

the Staatstheater Braunschweig where he played among others the title character in »Liliom«, Jago in

Shakespeare’s »Othello«, Prospero in »The Tempest« and von Kalb in »Kabale und Liebe«.

www.fliegende-fische.com

Oliver Simon, actor, Germany

Oliver Simon, born in 1975 in Berlin, studied at the Berlin Academy of Dramatic

Arts »Ernst Busch« where he worked together with Peter Zadek. Subsequently,

after graduating he was engaged at the Kölner Schauspiel. Since 2004 he has

been a member of the independent theatre company »fliegende fische« (»flying

fish«) with which he toured through India and Nepal for eight months. Two

productions of »fliegende fische« were shown in Germany: »Götter Guru

Germany« and »Heimgesucht – ein Stück Deutschland«. Guest engagements

took him, among others, to the Theater Baden-Baden and the Maxim Gorki

Theater Berlin. In addition to his activities as an actor, he works with young

people and drama students in theatre education and university contexts. In

2010 Oliver Simon joined the ensemble of Staatstheater Braunschweig where he appeared, among

others, in the world premiere of »Aller Tage schwarzer Kater«, as Wurm in »Kabale und Liebe«, as Ariel

in William Shakespeare’s »The Tempest«, all directed by Daniela Löffner.

www.fliegende-fische.com

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Adrian Damian, stage and costume designer, Romania Adrian Damian was born in 1984. Since 2012 he is pursuing a PhD in Stage

technologies, special effects and smart objects in the theater performance at the

National University of Theatre and Film Art in Bucharest. Here, he also received

a Master’s Degree in Scenography in 2010 and has attended Master Degree

classes in Light design and Sound Design. He has acquired extensive

experience as an actor as well as in the areas of set design and stage objects,

masks and special effects.

In 2013 he won the Oradea Short Theater International Festival Award for Best

Performance in Mr. Swedenborg Wants to Dream, directed by Mihai Măniuțiu, and was nominated for

The UNITER Award for Best Scenographer for Life is a Dream, directed by Mihai Măniuțiu.

Kim Efert, musician, Germany Kim Efert completed a degree in jazz guitar and instrumental teaching at the

Musikhochschule Köln. His current projects include the jazz-world music

quartet »East Affair« and the trio »Kim3«. With the ensemble »East Affair« he

is the winner of the national competition Creole in 2009 and winner of the

NRW Competition Creole 2008. He regularly tours with the Canadian

harmonica virtuoso Carlos del Junco and, since 2012, also with the musical

Cabaret Act »Annamateur«. He has worked with musicians like Arve

Henriksen, Bob Mintzer, Bill Ramsey, and popular artists such as Clueso,

Fools Garden and Annett Louisan. Efert performed at prestigious festivals like

»Colours of Ostrava« in the Czech Republic, »Almaty Jazz Festival« in Kazakhstan and »Salzburger

Festspiele«. He has worked in music and radio drama productions, such as the audio book »Measuring

the World« by Daniel Kehlmann (German Grammophon, 2007). Efert participated in various theatre

productions including »Measure for Measure« by Shakespeare (directed by Thomas Ostermeier,

2011) at the Schaubühne in Berlin.

www.kimefert.de

www.eastaffair.com

CALENDAR BRAUNSCHWEIG / CRAIOVA 2014

July 7 – 27: Rehearsals in Braunschweig, Germany

September 25-26: Rehearsals in Craiova, Romania

September 27: Premiere Craiova, Romania

October 21-22: Rehearsals Braunschweig, Germany

October 23: Premiere Braunschweig, Germany

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Presentation STRAWBERRY ORPHANS . Conference in Liège

GRANDMOTHER

My grandchild Marina said her mother is lying to her. She didn’t told her that she will be away such a long time

and now she still isn’t come back.

Marina told me her mum will be beaten when she comes back – but now she still isn’t back.

It is terrible. There are four who are away, four of my children. One is in Scotland since eight years and one girl is

in …eeehhh… not in Spain, but in … I don’t remember the country…

The mother of Marina and her aunt are in Germany. They also have been there last year and they are this year

again.

They have the possibility to work somewhere and so they have to go.

Three months now.

Last year they have been away for two months and one week and now I’m wondering… They told us they are

stopped till every work is done. I don’t know exactly…. They don’t know exactly… when they will come home. Till

everything is picked clearly, but new strawberries were coming into…

I have no telephon. I do no phone calls. They don’t want me to talk at the phone because then everyone is crying.

The father of Marina is working at the marketplace, from 6 o’clock in the morning till 8 in the night. 750 lei –

almost nothing … it isn’t even enough for the girl… We can live almost with nothing.

And here I am. I have land but I am not able to farm anymore. The women over the way, she is doing my laundry

as I can’t do it. My back… I can’t walk anymore, my legs are not good anymore. Here I am - with the girl. What

shall I do?

No, no. I‘m not in the mood for singing. I’m not in the mood for anything.

My biggest wish is that the children are getting jobs here so they can be with their kids in the evening. So that

they don’t have to be always with me …. that would be the best. That would be even good for me. I’m 81 years

old. My husband passed away 21 years ago. I stay on earth and I have to take care for everyone. I can’t walk

anymore. It would be good, when I pass away suddenly. Then I wouldn’t have to watch my children having such a

hard time. If they would find jobs in Romania, I could pass away und it would be perfect because I could pass

away peacefully.

MARINA

I will go to high school and then I will be a doctor. I told my grandmother I will bring her back to health and so she

will never have to pass away…

I have a desire, I wish my mother would come home. She told me next time she will give me a present: a Monster

High Barbie. The Barbie can tumble around.

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2.4 Theater & Orchester Heidelberg (DE) - City Drama Theatre Gavella

(HR)

Working title: I am crying instead of my dog

How does ageing differ due to historical and political implications? How does the collective memory of a

nation and also personal memories of individuals affect the history of our lives and perceptions of our

present and future? Memory is the topic that creative teams from the Gavella Theater and the Theater

und Orchester Heidelberg are investigating. The Croatian award winning writer Ivor Martinić together

with the German director, Miriam Horwitz, are researching how memory is being experienced in different

generations, what it means for collective and personal identity, how memory is a part of our

relationships, family, the political situation and our communities. With a research and work phase both in

Zagreb and in Heidelberg, Ivor Martinic and Miriam Horwitz are exploring through investigative work the

attempt of understanding memory as a part of our life, framed by the present, the use and the abuse of

it. The play as an outcome and documentation of their mutual research will be staged two times: once

with an artistic team in Heidelberg and once with an artistic team in Zagreb. The two teams got the

chance to meet and discuss during a one week workshop, held in Zagreb in February 2014. Both

productions will be on show in Zagreb and in Heidelberg by 2015.

The team

Playwright: Ivor Martinić

Director and Stage Designer: Miriam Horwitz

Croatian production

Dramaturge: Ivor Martinić

Choreographer: Anne-Mareike Hess

Executive Producer: Sonja Kovačić

Costume designer: Marita Ćopo

Cast: Ivana Roščić / Filip Križan / Natalija Đorñević / Ivana Bolanča

German production Dramaturge: Jürgen Popig Executive Producer: Katja Herlemann

Costume designer: Pia Dederichs Cast: Josepha Grünberg / Fabian Oehl / Lisa Förster / Andreas Seifert

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lvor Martinić (1984), playwright, based in Croatia

Ivor Martinić was born 1984, studied at the Academy of Dramatic Arts

in Zagreb and worked as dramaturge in various national theatres in

Croatia. In 2008 he took part in the "Forum of young playwrights” at

the “New Plays” festival in Wiesbaden, Germany. He is the author of

very successful drama plays: “The Title of the Drama about Ante is

Written Here” and “A Play about Mirjana and those around her”. Both

plays have been translated and produced in at least ten European

countries. Ivor was awarded the Fabriqué en Croatie award by the

REZ association and Small Marulic Award. He also is the youngest

playwright to receive the Marin Drzic-Award.

Miriam Horwitz (1984), director and stage designer, based in Germany

Miriam Horwitz was born in Munich and studied directing and

choreography at Hochschule für Schauspielkunst Ernst Busch in

Berlin. She has realized productions at INKONST, Theatermaskine

(Sweden), at Centraltheater and at Tanzarchiv Leipzig. Besides

directing she has continuously been working as an actress in theatre

and on TV. 1997 she received the Adolf-Grimme-Preis for her role in

“Bruder Esel”. For two years she has been working as assistant

director at the Theater und Orchester Heidelberg, where she also directed the German premiere of the

piece “Yukonstyle” by Sarah Berthiaume in 2013. For the Art of Ageing project she is director and stage

designer for both, the Croatian production in Zagreb and the German production in Heidelberg.

Anne-Mareike Hess, performer and choreographer, based in Luxembourg

Anne-Mareike Hess is a Luxembourgish performer and

choreographer. She studied music and dance at the Conservatory in

Luxembourg, at the TROIS C-L, at the HfMDK in Frankfurt/Main

(2002-2006 Diplom Bühnentänzerin) and at the

Hochschulübergreifendes Zentrum Tanz Berlin / Ernst Busch (2008-

2010 Master in Choreography). As a performer Anne-Mareike Hess

has been working, among others, with William Forsythe, Eeva Muilu,

Rosalind Goldberg, Zeina Hanna and Miriam Horwitz. She has

worked as an assistant for several choreographers and as a

dramaturge for Marina Tenorio. Her own choreographies have been

performed at different festivals in Europe and Canada. Since 2009

Anne-Mareike Hess is collaborating in different formats with the theater director Miriam Horwitz.

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Pia Dederichs (1986), costume designer, Germany

Pia Dederichs was born in Ahlen, Germany, in 1986. She studied at the

Modeco School in Zurich, Swiss, costume and stage design at the

Toneelacademie in Maastricht (NL) after being trained as a costumer.

She interned at the Dusseldorfer Schauspielhaus and did the costume

and stage design of the production “Katzelmacher” at the Münchner

Kammerspiele. Pia Dederichs was an assistant stage designer at the

Theater und Orchester Heidelberg and is now working as a freelance

costume and stage designer.

Andreas Seifert (1959), actor, Germany

Andreas Seifert was born in 1959 in Gelsenkirchen. He studied at the

Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hannover and became a member of the

drama company at the Staatstheater Stuttgart in 1986. Among others he played

at Staatstheater Stuttgart, Schauspiel Bonn, Schauspiel Frankfurt and

Volkstheater Wien. In 2007 he became part of the Berliner Ensemble. Andreas

Seifert has also appeared in various TV and movie productions. Since the

season 2011/12 Andreas Seifert is part of the drama company at Theater und

Orchester Heidelberg.

Josepha Grünberg (1986), actress, Germany

Josepha Grünberg was born in 1986 and graduated from her acting studies at

the Hochschule für Schauspielkunst “Ernst Busch” Berlin in 2013. She performed

at Schaubühne Berlin and Berliner Ensemble and since the season 2013/14 she

is part of the drama company at Theater und Orchester Heidelberg.

Fabian Oehl (1989), actor, Germany

Fabian Oehl was born in 1989 and graduated from his acting studies at

Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Leipzig in 2013. He has already played

different roles at the Neues Theater Halle and, since the season 2013/14, he is

part of the drama company at Theater und Orchester Heidelberg.

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Lisa Förster (1989), actress, Germany

Lisa Förster was born in 1989 and graduated from her acting studies at the

Folkwang Universität der Künste in Essen, Germany, in 2013. During her

formation she appeared in productions at the Schauspielhaus Bochum and at

the Pina Bausch Theater Essen. Lisa Förster has been part of the drama

company at Theater und Orchester Heidelberg since the season 2013/14.

„War Memories“ – First research phase in Zagreb Camera Obscura

By Miriam Horwitz

During our first research phase in Zagreb Ivor Martinic and I have approached the topic “war memories”

in different ways. Right in the beginning it became obvious, that our access to a topic, which is explicitly

related to the past, needed a link to the present. The present political situation in Croatia concerning

minorities such as homosexuals – the referendum that marks marriage as the life long union of only

man and woman is just one example – but also the fight about the Cyrillic letters on official signs in

Vukovar were good starting points for our investigation. We wondered about the question of change,

about a learning process or about sense behind history. Is history a fight against resignation? What are

the consequences of archiving the past? Why are changes in society as a whole such a long process, if

in individual minds change can happen in just few minutes? Why do we get the feeling that wars are not

CALENDAR HEIDELBERG / ZAGREB

2014 February 25 – March 05: workshop in Zagreb, playwright and director

April: research period with author and director

October 07 – November 15: rehearsals in Heidelberg, Germany

November 16: Premiere in Heidelberg, Germany

2015

January 16: Premiere in Zagreb, Croatia, Croatian version

January 17: Premiere in Zagreb, Croatia, German version

23

becoming fewer, but just change or move somewhere else? Why is there something like memories and

history, if everything just repeats itself in altering colours and shapes? Maybe we would be happier, if

we would be able to live after the principle of the animal, which forgets everything right away, like

Nietzsche describes it. Happiness might only appear, because the ability to forget bad things precedes.

Pondering over these frustrating ideas, eventually our focus stayed at the question what memory is in

general and which forms or consequences it has.

“Memory is an ideal place” (Sophie Ernst)

The person who remembers in all its present circumstances and present situation, places himself in a

different time. At first, remembering seems to be the renaissance of an event from the past. Something

antiquary, like an old photograph or a movie, that reflects a different time in the truest sense of the word.

Instead, remembering becomes an event in the actual present and thus gets framed and changed by a

different time. Even by looking at antiquary objects they become something else through the beholder.

“The reconstructed present is by definition always a different one.” (Maurice Halbwachs). Maurice

Halbwachs and Jan Assmann approach the topics of collective memory and oblivion with different social

frames of reference. History will always be different, depending on the present you look at it from. In the

end we probably still agree that history has a reason. “If we learned just that better and better, to use

history for the sake of life!” (Nietzsche) Our research is circling around these contradictions, socially and

private. What constitutes personal memory? How do we form the past, which traumata get inscribed in

our bodies? What influences do subconscious and conscious remembering have on our personality, our

identity?

»Every individual memory constitutes itself in communication with others. These ›others‹, however, are

not just any set of people, rather they are groups who conceive their unity and peculiarity through a

common image of their past.« (Jan Assman)

»I feel that for all of us the future is being gradually suspended and this seems to be the most

dangerous thing« (Slavenka Drakulić)

After these first careful steps and a very theoretic approach (via literature on memory by Wittgenstein,

Nietzsche, John Locke, Maurice Halbwachs, Jan Assmann among others) we looked for pictures, for

stories, that would draw us closer to war memories, but without getting moralistic. What are photographs

and monuments for us? What do they tell us, how to we react to them, which effects to we perceive?

How is it possible to create images on stage that give the opportunity to find different approaches to the

topic? We don’t want to choose just one single focus, so that the audience member will be activated in

the process of finding a personal link to the topic. Slavenka Drakulić’s »Balkan Express« is a very

personal and moving description of the war. She touches us, because she is describing social

processes from a very personal point of view. The political problem gets close without clichés. On the

contrary: Because she stays so close with her very personal view and experience, the reader becomes

part of an emotional investigation that he can’t elude. That’s what we were asking ourselves: How can

we create this sort of personality and emotionality, without having to tell a Hollywood story? Which other

ways of history telling are there besides Anne Frank’s and Slavenka Drakulić’s? How can we describe a

surface, a sort of view from the outside, which leaves it to the audience to find its way to the inside? Like

the children in the book »Kriegskinder« von Yury and Sonya Winterberg are describing the war through

pictures instead of through emotions.

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3. Irgendwann in der Nacht, written by Etel Adnan

Etel Adnan (1925), playwright, Lebanon

Etel Adnan was born in 1925 and raised in Beirut, Lebanon. She was educated in French schools and studied philosophy at the Sorbonne, Paris, at U.C. Berkeley and Harvard. From 1958 to 1972, she taught philosophy at the Dominican College of San Rafael, California. Based on her feelings of connection to, and solidarity with the Algerian war of independence, she began to resist the political implications of writing in French and shifted the focus of her creative expression to visual art. She became a painter. But it was with her

participation in the poets’ movement against the war in Vietnam that she began to write poetry and became, in her words, “an American poet”. In 1972, she moved back to Beirut and worked as cultural editor for two daily newspapers—first for Al Safa, later for L’Orient le Jour. She stayed in Lebanon until 1976. In 1977, her novel Sitt Marie-Rose was published in Paris, and won the “France-Pays Arabes” award. This novel has been translated into more than 10 languages, and was to have an immense influence, becoming a classic of War Literature. In 1977, Adnan moved back to California, making Sausalito her home, with frequent stays in Paris. Etel Adnan, is the patron of the project Art of Ageing. Her play “Irgendwann in der Nacht” (At a certain hour of the night), which was produced by the Staatstheater Karlsruhe and premiered on October 17th 2013, constituted the prologue to the project. Etel Adnan chose to write about the oneness of love. Two lovers meet after years of separation, they

talk about their past, their memories, the time that is now lost.

Cast: Irgendwann in der Nacht Antonia Mohr, 1967, actress, Germany

Antonia Mohr was born in Trier in 1967. She studied Romance philology

and philosophy before, in 1990, she started to study acting at the Academy

of Arts in Berlin. After receiving her degree she played at Theater der

Altmark in Stendal. Beginning in 1997 she worked as a freelance actress

and, among others, as a news broadcaster for the SFB. From 1998 to 2002

she was first employed by the Westfälische Kammerspiele in Paderborn

and later by the Landestheater Tübingen. From 2005 to 2010 she was a

permanent member of the theatre company in Heidelberg where she

played, among others, Robespierre in “Danton’s Tod” and Gertrude in

“Hamlet”. At the beginning of the 2011/2012 season Antonia Mohr became a part of the drama company

at Staatstheater Karlsruhe. Furthermore, she works as a voice-over artist for SWR and Arte.

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Eva Derleder, actress, Germany

Eva Derleder was born in Göppingen. She studied at Schauspielstudio

Frese in Hamburg, and, subsequently, worked in Mannheim, Stuttgart,

Neustrelitz and Baden-Baden. During her time at the Nationaltheater

Mannheim she was invited to the Berliner Theatertreffen with the

productions of “Onkel Vanja”, directed by Harald Clemen as well as “Quai

West”, directed by Jürgen Bosse. Since 1992 Eva Derlder has been

organizing her own solo performances with texts, among others, by

Ingeborg Bachmann,Natalia Ginzburg and Alice Munro. She has been a

part of the drama company at Staatstheater Karlsruhe since 2002/2003.

Ronald Funke (1954), actor, Germany

Ronald Funke was born in Berlin in 1954. After his studies at Staatliche

Schauspielschule Rostock he worked, among others, in Eisleben,

Greifswald, Schwerin, at Nationaltheater Mannheim, Volkstheater Rostock

and Hans Otto-Theater Potsdam. In Frankfurt/Oder he was a member of the

cabaret theatre „Die Oderhähne“. From 2005 to 2011 he was a member of

the drama company at Theater Heidelberg played, among others, in “Die

Räuber”, “Die Nibelungen”, “Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei” und “Dirty Rich”.

For his role of the father in the premiere of “Der Mann der die Welt aß” by

Nis-Momme Stockmann he was nominated “Actor of the Year” by Theater

heute. Since the season of 2011/2012 he is a member of the drama

company at Staatstheater Karlsruhe.

Robert Besta (1978), actor, based in Germany

Robert Besta was born in 1978 in Swientochlowice in Poland. After finishing

his civilian service in geriatric care he studied acting at the Ernst Busch

Academy for Dramatic Arts in Berlin. Since the season of 2005/2006 he is a

permanent member of the drama company at Staatstheater Karlsruhe

where he appeared in, among others, der Brandner Kaspar, Woyzeck and

Big Money. In 2007 he received the Golden Fan of the Artist’s and Theater

Community Karlsruhe which is awarded each year to an emerging actor of

the Staatstheater. Since 2006 Robert Besta is also head of a youth group,

works as a director and on movies. One of his movies, “Abgesang – Aus

dem Leben eines Theaterschauspielers”, was shown in the STUDIO. verliehen wird.

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Mathias Hannus (1982),stage director, Germany

Mathias Hanus, born in 1982 in Munich, studied philosophy, musicology

and German philology at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich. From

2010 to 2011 he was a guest assistant with the Bayerisches

Staatsschauspiel in Munich where he worked, among others, with Dieter

Dorn and Jan Philipp Gloger. Since the season of 2011/2012 he is an

assistant director at the Staatstheater Karlsruhe. There, he organised the

staged readings of “Mitteilung Nummer 10” by Samuel Gallet, “Beg your

pardon” by Marianna Salzmann, “Und dann” by Wolfram Höll as well as

“Personalien” by Gérard Watkins. In October of 2013 he directed the world

premiere of “Irgendwann in der Nacht” by Etel Adnan.

Christine von Bernstein, costume designer, Germany

Christine von Bernstein, born in 1984 as Christine Beggel in

Biberach an der Riß, studied Theatre Arts and was trained as

a photographer. After finishing her studies her installations

and photos were exhibited in galleries in Munich, Hamburg,

Berlin and Karlsruhe. Since 2009 she has been studying

Media Arts at the Academy for Design in Karlsruhe. As a

member of the performance and theatre collective “Die Happy

Few” she designed the scenography for SCARLETT // meine

diamanten sind von Cartier, du depp und Kult! as part of the

21st European Cultural Days. At the Graz Theatre she contributed to the performance of “Sex, Love and

Crime” by Alexander Nowak. In Karlsruhe and Bonn she was an assistant stage designer. Among many

others, she designed the stage for the German premiere of “My Secret Garden” by Falk Richter and the

world premiere of Etel Adnan’s “Irgendwann in der Nacht”.

Johannes Mittl, music direction, Germany

Johannes Mittl was born in Starnberg in 1984. Even before graduation from

the Academy for Music and the Performing Arts Stuttgart he worked as a

pianist, piano teacher and choirmaster. His first theatre production brought

him to Staatstheater Karlsruhe in 2011 where he performed as a keyboarder

in “Du must dein Leben ändern”. This was followed by productions at

Stadttheater Heilbronn, the JES in Stuttgart as well as the Theater und

Orchester Heidelberg.

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4. The conference “The Art of Ageing”

Following 5 months of research and interviews realized across Europe, the conference “Art of Ageing”

showcases the first research results which will be presented by the four commissioned young European

playwrights of the project: lvor Martinić, from Croatia, Nino Haratischwili from Germany, Silke Merzhäuser, Werkgruppe 2, from Germany, and Peca Stefan from Romania.

PROGRAMME

Thursday March 13, 2014

09:30 – 17:00 Art of Ageing partner meeting

Théâtre de Liège

Saturday March 15, 2014

14:00 – 14:30 Presentation of the working session’s results Université de Liège / Salle des Professeurs

14:30 – 15:15 Art of Ageing Prologue: Reading Irgendwann in der Nacht , written by Etel Adnan and directed by Mathias Hannus, a production by Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Université de Liège

15:15 – 17:15 Art of Ageing session

Presentation of the research work in the framework of the project “The Art of Ageing” with Etel Adnan (playwright and patron of the project) and the playwrights of

the project : lvor Martinić (Croatia) Nino Haratischwili (Germany) Silke Merzhäuser (Germany) and Gina Calinoiu Peca Stefan (Romania) Moderated by Joachim Klement, General Intendant, Staatstheater

Braunschweig

Université de Liège

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5. About the European Theatre Convention

The European Theatre Convention (ETC) is a network of European public theatres founded in 1988 to

promote contemporary drama theatre, to support the mobility of artists and to develop artistic exchange

throughout Europe and beyond. With high quality creative and innovative theatre projects the ETC

seeks to reaffirm the role of theatre, its intrinsic subversive force to shape a European public space,

offering access to culture for all generations. Connecting theatre makers and the citizens of Europe, the

ETC employs theatre to support intercultural dialogue and with its activities, to develop intercultural

competence in our increasingly diverse societies in a hyper-competitive world. To respond to these

challenges the ETC represents the member European theatres and participates in the exchange of

good practices and good ideas between European institutions, member states and civil society. The

ETC has become the largest pan-European network of its kind, representing over 40 member theatres

in 25 countries, 8,000.000 theatre goers, more than 11,000 taxpaying people employed by public

theatres, thousands of artists in over 20 countries and 16,000 performances and public events per year.

6. Contacts

European Theatre Convention Heidi Wiley

General Secretary of the European Theatre Convention

E: hwiley@etc-cte.org

T: 0049 30 28441 461 Elsa Varenne Art of Ageing project coordinator

E: evarenne@etc-cte.org

T: 0049 30 28441 460

European Theatre Convention c/o Deutsches Theater

Schumannstr 13 A

10117 Berlin

Germany

F: 0049 30 28441 488

www.etc-cte.org

www.artofageing.eu

www.artofageing.blogspot.de

Theatre is our tool, Europe our working space!