What does it mean to work within an (independent) art form that creates communication and on a form of communication that is (independent) art? Can production practices that do not (primarily) address their audiences as visitors or consumers but instead as neighbors or cooperation partners be described with the term of artistic community work? Which specific formats have long-since been conducted along the differences between art and its mediation, where are current experiments taking place in different artistic production contexts and where are we currently seeing potential for the future?

At the symposium in cooperation with the Neuköllner Oper, a topic will be in focus that we have already practically elaborated as the Berlin Performing Arts Program with audience formats from Theater Scoutings Berlin, with the Days of the Independent Performing Arts Community in Berlin and with the community and neighborhood projects: a variety of different types of dialog and collaboration between artistic production contexts, different types of audiences and additional members of society.

With experts from the practice of the (independent) performing arts and associated fields, cultural administrators and politicians, we would like to share some good practice examples of successful community work and reflect upon them: from outreach measures such as artistic interventions in the neighborhood, participatory opportunities such as performance clubs and corresponding productions, as well as various workshop formats, to the provision of resources such as rooms to communities and their active responsibility in the creation of the schedule of programming.

In doing so, we will look into the potentials of an active cultural participation by a variety of stakeholders, both in terms of production processes and aspects of the common good, as well as the practical pitfalls of implementation, the associated institutional transformations, and the conditions for success of corresponding artistic mediation and community work.

The symposium begins in the afternoon and includes presentations, open discussion formats, and in-depth, practice-oriented workshops, culminating in a joint exchange in the evening. The symposium is especially intended for producers, mediators as well as artists and additional members of the independent performing arts community.

The event is a collaboration between the Berlin Performing Arts Program and the Neuköllner Oper.
 

Accessibility

Language

As simultaneous interpretation is being planned for individual formats and we are able to provide personal simultaneous interpretation into English from German spoken language for the workshop and exchange formats (4:00 pm to 6:00 pm). You can indicate language requirements on the registration form.

Spatial Accessibility

The event will take place in the Neuköllner Oper, Karl-Marx-Straße 131/133, 12043 Berlin. The auditorium in which the beginning and end parts of the event will take place (1:30 pm to 3:30 pm as well as 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm) is located on the third floor. The auditorium itself is laid out in a barrier-free manner. An accessible bathroom is also located on the same floor. Access to the auditorium can be provided via a stage cargo elevator that can be used with the support of the theater’s team. The spaces for the afternoon formats (4:00 pm to 7:00 pm) are mostly not accessible without barriers. Over the course of your registration, please be sure to let us know about any accessibility needs so that we can look for a suitable solution together.

 

Program

1:00 pm
Accreditation

1:30 pm to 3:30 pm
Welcome and Introduction
In German and English speaking language, simultaneous interpretation provided
With Dr. Rainer Simon (Neuköllner Oper), Florian Hohnhorst and Linus Lutz (The Berlin Performing Arts Program)

Field Reports – Keynote Presentation from the Practice
Moderation: Alisa Tretau (Regisseurin, Autorin, Vermittlerin)
With Dr. John McGrath (Factory International, Aviva Studios, Manchester), Marianna Sonneck (Club Real), Anne Wiederhold-Daryanavard (Brunnenpassage, Wien)

Over the course of brief keynote presentations, producers and institutions from Berlin, Germany and Europe will provide insight into their work at the crossroads of art, mediation and community work. In doing so, the focus will be placed on a variety of perspectives: from institutional opening processes to local networking strategies all the way to experimental formats of participation. The keynote presentations will provide highlights, inspirations and, at best, positive irritations as shared starting points for the rest of the symposium.

After the Keynotes is Before the Coffee – Thematic Table Conversations
In German and English speaking language

The participants will then enter directly into conversation with the keynote speakers and will be able to ask questions and share their thoughts. The format is open: everyone is welcome to change tables and there is coffee available (almost) everywhere. #Cookingupthegoodstuff

3:30 pm to 4:00pm
Break
 

4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Responsibility, co-determination, claims to power: Workshop on community work and institutional change processes. 
In German and English speaking language. We understand communication as a shared practice – mutual support and participation are expressly encouraged.

Led by: Chang Nai Wen (director, producer)
With Bassam Dawood (storyteller, actor, theater director), Lisa Sarachmann (Stiftung Stadtmuseum Berlin)

Seriously intended models for participation are much more than the newest sparkly distraction from the magic hat of audience development and promise perceptible societal impact and artistic innovation. At the same time, the change processes that are necessary for this pose challenges to long-standing structure with more traditional programming work. In this workshop, we will approach the question of how institutions can react to participatory demands on the structural and organizational levels – no matter whether these are questions of opening processes, new committees, co-creation, co-curation, shared responsibility or the reallocation of resources. What hurdles to programming teams encounter while they are doing so? Which strategies, tools or models haven proven themselves to be worthwhile. Where are there clashes – and where are we starting to see light at the end of the tunnel? This workshop is open for all and is recommended for those with leadership positions.

Registration required, see registration form below.

4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Workshop on Participatory Performing Arts for Producers
In German speaking language. Contributions in spoken English are welcome. Whispered translation into English will be provided as needed. We understand communication as a shared practice – mutual support and participation are expressly encouraged.

Led by: Eva Hartmann (coach, mentor, moderator, mediator, lecturer, producer)
With Christina Runge (dramaturg, producer), Christopher Utpadel (edugrapes/studio for artistic & transcultural learning)

A large number of artistic productions are created in collaboration with non-professional participants, communities or local groups which bring specific requirements along with themselves as such. This workshop is especially intended for producers, production managers and additional team members with an interest in specific artistic project work and participatory production contexts with diverse (apparently) non-professional target groups. The central focus is placed on the exchange regarding the specific framework conditions under which such projects are successfully realized: which resources – time, spaces, fee models, team roles – are necessary in order to move from the concept to the specific realization? What are imperative preconditions and what are challenges, according to experience? How can uncertainties and negotiation processes be dealt with professionally? And how do things look when it comes to the topic of sustainability? Psst! Some light can also be shed on the aesthetic potentials, of course.

Registration required, see registration form below.

4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
(No) Wishful Thinking: A Desideratum Workshop for Audience Formats and Mediation Work
In German speaking language. Contributions in spoken English are welcome. Whispered translation into English will be provided as needed. We understand communication as a shared practice – mutual support and participation are expressly encouraged.

Led by: Ronan Favereau (artistic director, actor, theater educator)

Today, there are diverse practices and forms of mediation in all of the traditional art forms that allow change reception and accessibility conditions for a variety of audiences. In the field of the (independent) performing arts, the opportunities range from introductions and discussions with the audience to experimental mediation formats all the way to opportunities that are independent from the schedule of programming such as backstage tours, topic-specific workshops or dedicate open audience formats such as parties and participatory actions. This workshop will provider mediators with the opportunity to elaborate the central needs for the further development of their working fields, projects and expertises. Which audience formats should be perspectively expanded or tried out for the first time? What spaces to maneuver and forms of cooperations are necessary for this on the part of the performance venues? What would be reasonable measures for further education or for expanding networks?

Registration required, see registration form below.
 

4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Outside the Performance Box: Exchange and Networking Format for Community Work in Neighboring Fields
In German speaking language. Contributions in spoken English are welcome. Whispered translation into English will be provided as needed. We understand communication as a shared practice – mutual support and participation are expressly encouraged.

Led by: Caroline Galvis (theater producer, actress, presenter)
With João Eduardo Albertini (Spore Initiative), Helene Böhm & Franziska Hupke (GESOBAU AG, social and neighborhood management), Anika Göbel & Dr. Piotr van Gielle Ruppe (VskA Berlin - Association for Social and Cultural Work – Berlin Regional Association), Leyla Ibrahimova (Landesfreiwilligenagentur Berlin e.V.), Olivia Hyunsin Kim & Dina Nurpeissova (PSR Kollektiv), Armin Massing (Berlin Global Village), Galo E. Rivera (Sinema Transtopia), Andreas Scherffig & Leonie Seitz (Marinehaus, Stiftung Stadtmuseum Berlin), Trang Trần (Berlin Mondiale), Sarah Waterfeld (Union für Cultural Commons Berlin)

Different forms of participation and cooperation, cultural exchange and sociospatial anchoring are being tried out and put into place in Berlin in a wide variety of contexts, from libraries to neighbor centers all the way to civil society initiatives. A market of possibilities offers the opportunity to get to know people working in these contexts, their projects and their methods of working and to enter into conversation with them: about shared experiences, differences and possible alliances with the independent arts community. The goal is to open up perspectives on community-oriented and community-based work over the course of conversation as a cross-sectional topic for non-profit operators. An additional goal is to go beyond the alleged classic production logics and examine structural synergies, methodical exchanges as well as potential cooperations.

Open format, no separate registration required.

6:00 pm to 7:00 pm
Break and buffet
 

7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Same New, Same New? Perspectives on a Community-Oriented Art and Culture of the Performing Arts
In German and English speaking language. Simultaneous interpretation is being planned
Moderation: Alisa Tretau (director, author, mediator)
Keynote presentation: Prof. Emerita Dr. Hanne Seitz

Panel with Anica Happich (Neuköllner Oper, cultural worker), Olivia Hyunsin Kim (choreographer, director, curator), Dr. John McGrath (Factory International, Aviva Studios, Manchester), Hany Tran Hoang (Berliner Projektfonds Urbane Praxis - Berlin Project Fund for Urban Practice), Moritz von Rappard (Senatsverwaltung für Kultur und Gesellschaftlichen Zusammenhalt - Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion)

To close out the symposium, we will expand the jointly elaborated practical perspectives with theoretical and cultural policy fundamental questions. To kick things off, a keynote presentation will shed some light on the structural, political and aesthetic dimensions of terms such as “community”, “participation”, “mediation” and “involvement”. How can their relationship to each other be described with a glance toward their lived practice in the performing arts? Following this, guests from the areas of cultural administration and cultural policy, arts funding, the independent arts community and related fields will discuss the societal potentials of artistic community work, the further developments in programming and funding required for this as well as discuss possible goal conflicts of a dedicated cultural production that is oriented around the common ground.