Directing in Theatre for Young Audiences – IXYPSILONZETT 01/2020

Directing in TYA Process and Dialogue: Julia Dina Heße on direct(ing) responsibility | Learning across borders: Christel Hoffmann and Wolfgang Schneider review The International Directors’ Seminar | Inclusivity in TYA: Nora Tosconi, Manuela Runge and Wera Mahne want to stir things up | Dear Author: a letter from director Martin Grünheit | Dear Director: a letter from author Christina Kettering

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THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE 4

THE DIVERSITY OF DIRECTING IN THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES IN GERMANY

by Anna Eitzeroth

8

AN ACT OF TRANSLATION A discussion about risk, patience and globalisation

by Leandro Kees, Verena Regensburger, Mina Salehpour and Gerd Taube

14

DIRECT(ING) RESPONSIBILITY How directors can make the world a better place

by Julia Dina Heße

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ASSITEJ – DIRECTORS IN TYA 17

LEARNING WITH AND FROM ONE ANOTHER An international exchange of directors in TYA

by Christel Hoffmann, Wolfgang Schneider and Annett Israel

20

WALLS An illustrated reflection by Thom Browning

PERSPECTIVES 22

… THEN WE CAN STIR THINGS UP! Nora Tosconi, Manuela Runge and Wera Mahne discuss directing and inclusive theatre work

EDITORIAL

by Brigitte Dethier

“Giving directions” is a task for language learners that

our gaze, how we see our audience, the potential of a

everybody knows: “Take a left and then go straight ahead

dramatic text or a story, how we use and present all the

until you reach the big crossroads. There you take a right

magic the performing arts have to offer.

and you will see the big building on the left, that’s the

Many of you might know that ASSITEJ Ger-

theatre.” This task never includes looking back or turn-

many has been hosting DIRECTORS IN TYA – An In-

ing around, at best it may include hints regarding a good

ternational Exchange (International Directors’ Seminar)

resting place or a beautiful view.

since 1976. 531 directors from 81 countries have taken

ASSITEJ Germany has produced an English edition of its magazine IXYPSILONZETT for each ASSITEJ

part in the exchange and we will welcome 20 new participants in Braunschweig in 2021.

Congress since 2005 and we have always used this op-

Looking back at my own career I can hardly be-

portunity to look backwards and forwards, to stimulate

lieve that I was part of this exchange in Berlin in 1989,

discussions that include multiple perspectives, a variety

shortly before the wall came down. Meeting colleagues

of ideas and generations. The English issue is an invi-

from all over the world has been vital to myself as a di-

tation to the international ASSITEJ family to join our

rector, as a theatre maker, as a citizen of the world.

discussions and strengthen their exchange with theatre

It’s not just about TYA, it’s about knowing peo-

makers in Germany. And we hope that this magazine

ple in different parts of the world, it’s about love and

contributes to a global reflection on what directing can

friendship and care. The world has become bigger and

mean in TYA.

smaller. TYA brings us together as humans and what we

This issue takes a good look at the role of the di-

share is much more than, finding our way in the unknown

director of the JES (Junges

rector and on the idea of directorship. It discusses how

territory of a new city, a new play, a new team. We share

Ensemble Stuttgart) and

we work with people, questions individuality and collec-

looking at a crossroads, reflecting the decisions we take in

chair of ASSITEJ Germany.

tivity and reflects power relations. It asks how we direct

life and in the arts.

Brigitte Dethier is artistic

PAGE 22

25

A NEW FRAGILE LANGUAGE Directing young actors

by Constance Cauers

27

WHO DECIDES TODAY? Searching for collective artistic responsibility in traditionally hierarchical structures

by Lisa Zehetner

30

LETTER TO … … an unknown author

by Martin Grünheit

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PAGE 32

POSITIONS 32

SHARED PLAYGROUNDS Four directors share their enthusiasm for theatrical teamwork

by Romy Weyrauch, Hannah Biedermann, Franziska Henschel, Ariel Doron

35

ABOUT US | IMPRINT

… an unknown director

by Christina Kettering

The Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Cen-

Liebe Leser*innen, alle drei Jahre veranstaltet der

Cover:

tre (Kinder- und Jugendtheaterzentrum in der Bun-

Weltverband der Darstellenden Künste für junges Pub-

Johanna Benz, Leipzig

desrepublik Deutschland www.kjtz.de) is at the heart of

likum einen Kongress und ein großes, internationales

(graphicrecording.cool)

the many projects ASSITEJ Germany runs and Gerd

Festival. In diesem Jahr war der Weltkongress der

Taube, director of this unique national institution, has

ASSITEJ im Mai in der japanischen Hauptstadt Tokio ge-

taken on the task of editing this issue. He has invited

plant, wurde aber wegen der Corona-Pandemie auf März

fascinating, experienced and inspiring people to discuss

2021 verschoben. Anlässlich des Weltkongresses veröf-

their thoughts and ideas. We hope that you enjoy the

fentlicht die ASSITEJ Deutschland eine englische Aus-

read! We hope that you will find your way around Tokyo,

gabe ihres IXYPSILONZETT Magazins, die Sie jetzt in

even if we have to wait until March 2021 before we

Händen halten. Wir möchten damit Theatermacher*innen

can finally meet! And we are ready to draw a map of

aus aller Welt für das Kinder- und Jugendtheater in

TYA in Germany that brings you together with all

Deutschland begeistern und sie zum Austausch mit uns

the people, places and performances you would like to

einladen. Sie können alle Texte unter www.assitej.de auf

come and see!

Deutsch nachlesen. International hat sich für die Darstellenden Künste für junges Publikum die Abkürzung TYA etabliert. Dies steht für Theatre for Young Audiences.

ASSITEJ steht für Association International du Theatre pour l’Enfance et la Jeunesse. Der Verband setzt sich seit 1965 weltweit für das Kinderrecht auf Teilhabe an Kunst und Kultur und die Förderung von Künstler*innen ein und hat in Deutschland rund 400 Mitglieder. Viel Spaß beim Lesen!

Ihre Herausgeber*innen und das Redaktionsteam

THE DIVERSITY OF DIRECTING IN THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES IN GERMANY

by Anna Eitzeroth

The landscape of the theater for young audiences in Germany is just as rich and diverse in its organizational forms and funding models as its artistic offerings. There are four large and independent theaters for the young audience in Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig and Munich. At around 50 German municipal theaters there is a fourth department for children’s and youth theater in addition to the classic departments (opera, drama, ballet). The largest share of productions for children and adolescents in Germany, however, still have the independent theaters. Theater art for children and adolescents has thus established itself as an integral part of theater work in Germany and theater for young audiences has become a recognized part of theater culture in Germany. Anna Eitzeroth gives an overview of the practice of directing in the theater for young audiences in Germany.

THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 5

Left side: Scene from Nimmer (Never Again), Antje Pfundtner in Gesellschaft, by and with Antje Pfundtner. Photo: Anja Beutler

What is directing in theatre for young audiences? There are very dif-

A statistical look at directors in theatre for young audiences

ferent answers to this question. If you look in the Metzler Dictionary

Who are the directors in German children and youth theatres? A

of Theatre Theory under “directing”, you are referred directly to “stag-

glance at the premiere announcements in the 2020 IXYPSILON-

ing”. The lexicon does not even deal with people, it is not about

ZETT Yearbook for Children’s and Youth Theatres published by

“who”, but about what comes out of it. In contrast, the description

ASSITEJ Germany – it contains announcements of about 800 pre-

of the course in theatre directing at the Academy of Dramatic Arts

mieres – shows that about 91% of the directing positions mentioned

Ernst Busch in Berlin formulates the underlying concept of theatre

are held by individuals. These are mainly guest directors who receive

as follows: “The basis of our training concept is an understanding

commissions from different theatres and work with a different en-

of theatre that sees the actress and the actor as the centre of the play

semble in each production. Many theatres state that they produce

and where possibilities for action are opened up in texts.” In study

more than one production per season with the same director. In

courses the various artistic skills are usually clearly separated accord-

most cases, these people are the company’s artistic directors, the

ing to professional categories (dramaturgy, directing, acting, stage

heads of TYA departments at bigger state or municipal theatres or

design, theatre pedagogy etc.) and geared to the responsibilities and

they work in other functions in the theatre and claim a significant

hierarchies in German municipal and state theatres. The German

artistic influence within the institution. Around 47% of these direc-

Theatre and Orchestra Association (Deutscher Bühnenverein)

tors are female and 53% male. Since the majority of the theatres for

describes the profession of the director as follows: “The task of the

young audiences are represented in these premiere announcements,

director is to stage theatre works. For this purpose, he develops a

we can assume that the proportion of women directors in theatre for

concept for a sequence of scenes based on a text, often in close co-

young audiences is significantly higher than in theatre for general

operation with dramaturgs, set and costume designers”. In addition

audiences, where the proportion of women directors is around 30%.

to directing courses offered by artistic academies, there are other ways to become a director: humanities courses like Theatre Studies,

Scene from Die Paten (The godparents), Turbo Pascal, directed by Eva Plischke and Margret Schütz.

Cultural Studies or Philosophy as well as courses that combine the-

Photo: Milan Benak

ory and practice like the Applied Theatre Studies at the University of Giessen and the Cultural Studies courses at the University of Hildesheim. Many theatre makers, especially graduates from Giessen, Hildesheim or similar backgrounds, question hierarchies and the division of responsibilities in the big theatre institutions and are experimenting with alternative working methods and aesthetic approaches. The various professional paths into theatre making are as diverse as the self-perceptions and theatrical concepts of the theatre-makers that arise from them.

Theatre for young audiences plays little or no role in most courses of study, – for example, only the University of Hildesheim has so far established a professorship for the aesthetics of children’s and youth theatre. In addition, there are “next generation” programs of children’s and youth theatre festivals, ASSITEJ networking and professional events, and the endeavours of theatre makers themselves to invite and involve young artists.

6 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE

Approximately 11% of the directors are also listed as the au-

made by people who are involved in the artistic work in many dif-

thors of the production they are directing. Some of these are direc-

ferent ways: as concept developers, dramaturgs, actors and/or

tors who also write or adapt texts for their work. There are, however,

scenographers. Decisions are made jointly, then implemented and

also devised plays, and productions in which the text plays little or

presented on stage. Collectives work almost exclusively on a free-

no role at all. Here, different understandings of authorship become

lance basis. They do not usually have their own venue, but co-pro-

apparent: literary authorship of the original text, and artistic author-

duce with production companies and show their work as guest per-

ship in a production without a written text, in which the authorship

formances.

is attributed to the director.

With regard to the different forms of theatre, it is striking

Approximately 9% of the above-mentioned directorial com-

that a choreographer or musical director (usually instead of a direc-

missions are undertaken by two or more people as co-directors. In

tor) is named in only about 5% of the premieres. This shows that

some cases 3 to 9 individuals are named as directors of a produc-

dance and music theatre for young audiences currently still ac-

tion. There are also collectives that renounce traditional responsi-

counts for only a small proportion of the spectrum of theatrical

bilities in the production process. Here, the staging decisions are

work.

30 YEARS OF

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SAVE THE DATE:

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27. International Theater Festival for Young Audiences Rhine-Main

4 - 15 March 2021 www.starke-stuecke.net

AUGEN BLICK MAL! THE FESTIVAL OF THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES

APRIL 16 21 2021 BERLIN

WWW.AUGENBLICKMAL.DE is an event of

in cooperation with

is funded by

THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 7

Aesthetic horizons and structural changes

pulses of theatre creators – e.g. through casting decisions – have also

The range of performing arts for young audiences has broadened in

had a structural effect on theatre for young audiences. Depending

recent years. Artists and collectives who have worked for adult audi-

on their background, directors, choreographers and theatre collec-

ences outside municipal and state theatre structures have produced

tives have contributed their own ideas about theatre, authorship and

their first works for young audiences and brought along their own

collaboration. This has also led to frictions and discussions in the

working methods and aesthetic approaches. Groups such as Turbo

children’s and young people’s theatre scene. The diversity of working

Pascal, Monster Truck, Gintersdorfer/Klaßen or the choreographer

and organisational forms has had a positive effect on the develop-

Antje Pfundtner have not developed their artistic signature especially

ment of theatre for young audiences, as has the diversity of theatrical

for young audiences, but have rather addressed them in new ways.

perceptions and aesthetic approaches, since they have the potential

Thus, the aesthetic spectrum of children’s and youth theatre has been

to fuel discussions, change structures and promote openness in

expanded through a greater diversity of directorial styles. This has

artistic processes.

also stimulated discussions among those theatre professionals who have specialised in theatre for young audiences during their careers.

In addition to working with professional actors, artistic work

Sources:

with children and young people has gained increasing recognition.

https://www.hfs-berlin.de/regie.html, accessed on 22.01.2020

Over the past ten years productions featuring children and young

http://www.buehnenverein.de/de/jobs-und-bildung/berufe-am-theater-einzelne.html?view=34,

people as performers have increasingly been invited to festivals and

accessed on 22.01.2020

been the subject of controversial discussions. Choreographers such

IXYPSILONZETT. Jahrbuch für Kinder- und Jugendtheater 2020 der ASSITEJ Deutschland

as Ives Thuwis and Samir Akika have given decisive impulses here and the Young Actors department at Bremen Young Theatre is an example of how stage productions with young performers can be-

Anna Eitzeroth works for the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Centre in Frankfurt (Main)

come part of an institution’s profile.

and heads the team for “Pathways into theatre” (Wege ins Theater), ASSITEJ Germany’s funding

The inclusion of artists with disabilities is not yet taken for granted in German theatre for young audiences, not even in evening performances. The director Wera Mahne has staged several productions with ensembles of deaf and hearing performers in recent years.

These shows combine sign language, spoken language and gesture/bodywork on different levels. Invitations of these productions to festivals such as Augenblick mal! and Westwind have led to questions connected to accessibility not only for audiences, but also for artists who want to take part in the professional exchange these festivals offer for the TYA scene. Here, a directors’ artistic choices and her decision to contribute to discussions around accessibility and inclusion have contributed to highlighting access barriers in the theatre in general, and thus triggered structural changes that affect the audience and the artistic discourse alike.

These examples show that the aesthetic diversity in performing arts for young audiences is constantly growing. However, the im-

programme that creates access to TYA.

AN ACT OF TRANSLATION A discussion about risk, patience and globalisation

by Leandro Kees, Verena Regensburger, Mina Salehpour and Gerd Taube

What do directors need to know about their young audience? What role does this topic play in artistic training? Do you need a special attitude towards this audience? What possibilities are there for children and young people to participate in decision-making processes in the theater? Three directors exchanged their thoughts via e-mail about these and other questions about directing in the theater for young audiences. Leandro Kees, at the time was working on a youth novel in Patagonia, Mina Salehpour was directing at Staatsschauspiel in Dresden and Verena Regensburger was working in Munich. The digital discourse was nevertheless stimulating and made the three directors, who have not yet met in person, curious about the work of the other participants.

THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 9

Left side: Scene from THESE TEENS WILL SAVE THE FUTURE, Münchner Kammerspiele, directed by Verena Regensburger. Photo: Josef Beyer

Gerd Taube: What special attitude does it take to direct shows for a young

but also as a teacher of future directors. I have been involved in artis-

audience?

tic management for a long time and this has also influenced my understanding of the subject.

Mina Salehpour: As a director I have to take children seriously. Only

In order to reflect on the future perspectives of TYA, it is cru-

then can they believe the stories I tell them. But that doesn’t mean that

cial for me to look at how and where prospective theatre makers are

I have to limit my directing language or aesthetics, or that I have to

learning; that is, to focus on the connections between training, prac-

stage a children’s version of it. As a child I hated nothing more than

tice and mediation.

being treated like a child. The “children’s table”, or the so-called “cat table” at family gatherings for example!!! The thought of it still makes me angry. I hate the expression “you’re just a child”. That means some-

GT: What role did theatre for young audiences play in your professional

thing like “you have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA”. I don’t believe that.

training? What would you have hoped for there?

Children notice everything. They can only too well distinguish truth from lies. And yet, for me the theatre is a place of fiction. In all my

MS: I did not have any special training in working for young audi-

work it should triumph over reality. So it’s a fine line to tell a good story,

ences. Since I started as an assistant director and did not study di-

with all that fantasy can offer, without betraying the essential truth.

recting or anything similar – I did not study at all – the question

But that equally applies to my work for non-children. The

never came up.

difference – at least for me – only lies in the actual choice of themes.

I don’t think that you necessarily need some kind of training

I would never call myself a director for children’ and young

in theatre pedagogy to stage productions for young audiences. But

people’s theatre. There is no difference in my approach between de-

you certainly need curiosity and empathy, and you must not shy away

veloping a concept for Staatsschauspiel Dresden or for Junges

from a dialogue with your audience, but rather keep looking out for it.

Schauspiel Düsseldorf, for GRIPS Theater in Berlin or Det Norske Teatret in Oslo. My team and I always work the same way. The

LK: In my case, theatre for young audiences was not a field of learn-

themes are decisive. Nothing else.

ing in either acting or dance training. You knew it existed, but that

It is not necessary to explicitly identify directors for young

was all. It wasn’t until years after my training, when I was offered

audiences. At most, this will result in them earning half as much.

the opportunity to create plays for young audiences, that I became

At least in Germany.

aware of the genre.

I would say that training for theatre for young audiences sel-

Leandro Kees: That’s a broad question in a field of very different in-

dom receives enough attention and recognition. I don’t think it is

stitutions. At German municipal theatres – to limit the question – I

necessary to study it as a special subject, but universities and colleges

would like to see more courage to experiment in our work for young

would certainly benefit from recognising and teaching theatre for

audiences. Children’s and young people’s theatre in Germany is

young audiences as a serious field. This is not always the case. In

often very much shaped by conventional theatre, unlike in Belgium,

dance not at all, in acting quite rarely.

for example. This leads me to the question of how theatre for young audiences positions itself in relation to the broad spectrum of con-

Verena Regensburger: During my theatre studies at the Ludwig Maxi-

temporary art forms, and which discourses, assumptions and

milian University in Munich, there was hardly any focus on theatre

paradigms influence its practice.

for young audiences. My time as an assistant director at the Münch-

The future development of children’s and youth theatre in a

ner Kammerspiele can also be partly understood as a training period.

global society is a topic that moves me deeply, not only as an artist

Right at the outset I had the opportunity to stage a winter fairy tale

10 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE

but tend to address adult generations with the challenge of winning them over as allies for their demands. It would be wrong to believe that theatre with young people does not reach an older audience and vice versa, that theatre for adults excludes a young audience. Theatre for all! Theatre with everyone!

To create theatre for young audiences and with children and young people, and to really give them a stage, is particularly successful when we are not talking about them, but rather when we are discussing things with them; when we not only discuss their topics of interest, but when they can express themselves and show what they are capable of. There is an enormous inherent power in the development of plays with young people, when a structure is created in which these different types become visible.

GT: How can we ensure that this power is part of the process and visible Peter Pan, Schauspiel Hannover 2013, Regie: Mina Salehpour. Photo: Katrin Ribbe

on stage?

for children. Following the motto “very little means, very little ex-

VR: In THESE TEENS WILL SAVE THE FUTURE the young people

pense – lots of magic, lots of illusions", the children’s fantasies were

preserve their compelling honesty and at times their disarming

transported into a world specially created for them. As I recall, my

naivety. They are not acting, they are. They are speaking for the col-

experiences with such an impartial and direct audience, with their

lective or standing up for their own personal demands. As Mina

honesty and involvement, were formative and strengthened my

Salehpour rightly states, “as a director I have to take children seri-

thinking about creating theatre.

ously” – whether they are on stage or in the audience.

LK: Teaching theatre for young audiences is a natural part of my the-

the fact of whether they are professional actors or performers

atre landscape. It would be impossible to ignore that. I teach self-

who are appearing on a stage for the first time. In these produc-

management (also known as career management) for prospective

tions, the amateur performers are the experts in everyday life, if

theatre makers, I offer this regularly as a guest lecturer at the Folk-

you like.

I am interested in the persons, characters, irrespective of

wang University in Essen and in workshops in other institutions. In

The rehearsal process is all about bringing out the different

this field of knowledge it would be hard not to take theatre for young

areas of expertise. It’s all about cooperation between all those in-

audiences seriously, because many of my colleagues have spent their

volved, developing the play jointly. As a director, I bring points of

entire artistic and professional development within this branch.

view into a theatrical context, but the statements and expressive possibilities of each individual already contain their own respective rel-

VR: In my bachelor’s thesis “Only those who play along can win” I

evance. Only when the actors are freed from a formative corset, can

examined the spectator as a co-actor. The audience is always a co-player.

they become truly visible.

Based on my last production THESE TEENS WILL SAVE

Young people experience theatre as a potential meeting place

THE FUTURE, I tend to think indirectly about (young) audiences.

for personal and social reflections and political debate; and art as an

Because young performers do not specifically address their peers,

act of translation.

THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 11

GT: What possibilities do you know of for involving children and young

the teens. Such a large group needs patience in all questions – be it

people in decision-making processes in the theatre?

regarding text, stage or costume – to confront each other on equal terms and give due weight to every opinion. But it is more than

VR: Many of the teens for my last production I approached at demos.

worth the effort. This is the only way to create an evening that teens

I invited them to take part in the project, with the additional remark:

want to share with others by communicating directly and honestly.

Let’s get into a conversation – I don’t want to make a play about your concerns solely on the basis of the research and materials I can ob-

MS: In my work, children and young people have not been involved

tain from the media. I want to know what is driving you, what you

as actors so far. And although this is not planned for the near future,

have to say. Nobody has to stand on stage at the end, but everybody

it has by no means been ruled out. Searching for a suitable concept

is welcome to do so.

for a theme, for a material always begins anew.

The young people speak their texts on stage – statements that

In our production Paradies, which is currently running at

they have formulated in the conversations during the rehearsals. The

Junges Schauspiel Düsseldorf , we invite the audience to join us on

team puts them in a sequence, but always in a feedback loop with

stage right at the beginning. The actors play in the midst of the au-

Westwind. Kinder- und Jugendtheater in Nordrhein-Westfalen Wolfgang Schneider, Stefan Keim (Hg.)

Schöne Aussicht. Kinder- und Jugendtheater in Baden-Württemberg Wolfgang Schneider, Bernd Mand (Hg.)

Starke Stücke. Theater für junges Publikum in Hessen und Rhein-Main Wolfgang Schneider, Nadja Blickle (Hg.)

ISBN 978-3-940737-89-2 EUR 16,00 Paperback, 124 Seiten, zahlr. Abbildungen

ISBN 978-3-943881-12-7 EUR 16,00 Paperback, 124 Seiten, zahlr. Abbildungen

ISBN 978-3-95749-193-0 EUR 16,00 Paperback, 124 Seiten, zahlr. Abbildungen

Erhältlich im Buchhandel oder portofrei unter www.theaterderzeit.de

12 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE

Scenes from TRASHedy, performing:group, directed by Leandro Kees. Photos: Paul Schopfer

dience and in this way the audience becomes a physical part of the

to go through these processes. It is also an attempt to create plays

play. Their presence on stage creates a common space.

that overcome language barriers. The world is becoming more global, why not theatre as well?

GT: Leandro began by speaking of his utopia of a potentially universal theatre language for a global audience. How could this utopia become

VR: I sincerely hope that I will soon be able to see one of your works

reality?

with no spoken language. This is an incredibly attractive approach to creating theatre without specifically verbal means: not creating

LK: I must admit that I can never be sure whether a play will reach

music or dance theatre, but rather finding a visual and acoustic lan-

its audience or not. But I believe that some of my pieces are globally

guage of its own.

compatible. TRASHedy and Chalk About, for example, have each been performed more than 200 times in over 20 countries.

I worked with a number of radical limitations on both pieces.

For example, I ignored all the literature on young people’s theatre

By first restricting oneself and thus putting oneself under the pressure to innovate and experiment, seems to me the most desirable approach for artists to create new works. Have the courage to be innovative!

and limited my material to newspaper articles. I accepted that I will neither know nor understand what makes young people tick or what interests them. I simply asked myself what interested me and tried to “talk” about it as honestly as possible. And with the word

Leandro Kees, born in Patagonia (Argentina), works mainly with the production ensemble

“talk” I come to the next limitation, because we often do without

performing:group using a variety of media in the fields of video, dance, theatre, installation and

speech as such.

performance.

Along with a team of colleagues, we asked ourselves how we could find scenic metaphors to address certain issues. And when

Verena Regensburger, born in Bad Aibling (Germany), works as a director with young female actors

language was used, it was often minimal, in the form of audio se-

at Munich Kammerspiele.

quences or videos. Because we are not dependent on any respective national language, our performers can just as easily perform in Delhi

Mina Salehpour, born in Tehran (Iran), worked as a director at various theatres and is currently on a

as in Berlin or Osaka. Nowadays I also write more text-intensive

permanent contract at Staatsschauspiel Dresden.

plays and enjoy staging texts at municipal theatres. But it goes without saying that these plays can only be performed in specific lan-

Gerd Taube, born in Marienberg (Germany), heads the Kinder- und Jugendtheaterzentrum

guage areas. Those are the rules of the game.

(Children and Youth Theatre Centre in the Federal Republic of Germany) and is the artistic director

I think young directors would discover an enormous amount about themselves if they could avoid verbal language from time to time. There you have neither rules nor methods. You are forced to understand dramaturgy in a completely new way. Limitation brings with it a kind of “compulsion to innovate”. I find it extremely healthy

of the National Biennial of the Theatre for Young Audiences Augenblick mal! in Berlin.

Verle gt auf J uni 2 0 21 / See y June o u in 202 1

Ein Festival des Internationalen Theaterinstituts (ITI), veranstaltet vom Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus.

Finanziert durch die Stadt Düsseldorf, das Land NRW und die Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien.

Gefördert durch

DIRECT(ING) RESPONSIBILITY How directors can make the world a better place

by Julia Dina Heße 21st century theatre is constantly developing. Different working methods have long been tried and tested and seemingly contradictory approaches have been successfully put on stage. At present, however, we can observe that one concept central to the work of directors is becoming increasingly important: responsibility.

A growing fragmentation of society, global radicalisation and crises

3. Responsibility for the audience: How is the audience involved in

like climate change, also lead to new and urgent discussions about

a production, how are children’s and young people’s voices heard?

the distribution of power within the theatre system. Directors’ responsibilities affect different areas of their work.

Ideally, directors regard theatre and the performing arts as a social laboratory in which to formulate social visions. These are created

1. Responsibility for artistic creation: What happens in the produc-

and developed in a transdisciplinary fashion and refer directly to a

tion process and what do you experience in the auditorium?

diverse environment and society. Equally diverse are the artistic strategies with which artists repeatedly address current issues with

2. Responsibility for the working process: How is the production

newly developed aesthetic forms and, in doing so, engage with so-

created?

ciety in order to enable change, reflect on diversity and reveal power structures.

Scene from 1001 Nacht oder die Macht des Erzählens (1001 Nights, or the Power of Storytelling), Junges Nationaltheater Mannheim, directed by subbotnik. Photo: Christian Kleiner

The future begins with the decisions and actions we make in the here and now. What responsibility can mean in the perform-

THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 15

ing arts today can be guessed and hoped for in current directing per-

pletely different, keep the process moving and repeatedly anticipate

sonalities and styles. In the following I have selected aspects from

or reject possible results.

current discussions and movements that I think I can recognise in TYA and have summarised them in succinct theses on directors’ re-

3. … for the audience

sponsibilities. The theses also point beyond the theatre.

Directors are in direct exchange with the children and young people for whom they are currently working. They are interested in gaining

Directors and responsibility

an insight into their views and viewing habits in order to establish

1. … for artistic creation: Directors know what they can do and what they want to develop with

Scene from Antigone, JungesSchauSpielHaus Hamburg, directed by Anne Bader. Photo:

each work. They choose their means and formats, possess a com-

Sinje Hasheider

mand of their own theatrical language and constantly re-examine their view of their work. They are curious about special and unusual forms of expression without bowing to trends or constraints from the organisation that commissions them or the audience. They struggle for the best possible artistic result, revise their concepts in the process and remain true to their artistic vision. Directors strive to constantly rethink and further develop the performing arts. They see theatre as an unfinished process of constant change. In their search for contemporary aesthetics and sustainable narrative strategies, directors juxtapose different methods of artistic production.

Their mode of expression is based on the invention of new concepts and ways to interpret the world. Their work turns this vision into a sensual experience.

2. … for the working process Directors are responsible for the entire production team and the working atmosphere in the rehearsal process, which is shaped by all those involved. They work on turning their artistic concept into the joint work of all participants. This requires transparency and openness on the one hand, clarity and determination on the other. A director should contribute to a pleasant, respectful and healthy working atmosphere. The director creates transparent hierarchies and does not deny them.

Directors increasingly fulfil an impulse-giving and organising function, rather than a classically leading one. They know no more about the outcome of a rehearsal/improvisation than the other participants. Thanks to their observational position, they can mould different ideas and offers into something whole or something com-

16 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | THEATRE – AUDIENCE – FUTURE

thought, not yet said, not yet done, so that they cannot be restrictive but rather inspire artistic processes and debates. One challenge, however, is that art by definition works on sensory impressions, but Scene from Vesper, JES Junges Ensemble Stuttgart, directed by Nicki Liszta. Photo: Alex Wunsch

action has a social dimension. It is (mostly and in many places) one of the privileges and advantages of art that it has no immediate con-

an appropriate relationship between narrative strategies and aesthet-

sequences or impacts in reality. Thus art becomes a space of possi-

ics. This means that abstractions and codes are created which simul-

bility, an open world to which everyone can belong. Art is not there

taneously start with the familiar and rub up against it, thereby pre-

to enforce one’s own goals and convictions, but to change perspec-

senting a challenge. Directors are aware of why they want to perform

tives and initiate (learning) processes. At the same time, theatre is a

a certain material for a certain audience and take a stance both in

public space. Thus it can be part of something bigger, a place of ex-

terms of content and aesthetics. Directors reflect critically on their

change and social networking. To what extent, then, can and will di-

attitude towards their audience: what attributions are made, how do

rectors for young audiences use their art to move audiences from

stage and audience communicate , how great is the influence of the

simply watching to being involved and from there to concrete action?

target group on the artistic process and its outcome?

And to what extent do directors want to or are allowed to dictate the goals of these actions? We are currently trying out various answers

Questions on social responsibility

to these questions and will continue to do so in the laboratory we call

Directors, along with the other artists, place their work in a public

theatre.

space. In doing so, they repeatedly raise the question of the responsibility and pioneering role of the theatre - even beyond the scenic event. How political does a director have to be, which current social issues does he or she have to be passionate about, what are his or

Julia Dina Heße is a freelance director and deputy chair of ASSITEJ Germany. She lives in Wies-

her concerns? Where does the director’s responsibility as an artist

baden (Germany).

end and merge into a responsibility as a citizen of a local society and a responsibility as a world citizen? Are his or her attitudes expressed

Scene from Der Steppenwolf, JES Junges Ensemble Stuttgart, directed by Brigitte Dethier. Photo:

solely in the finished production or also with regard to working

Alex Wunsch

methods in rehearsals? Should directors advocate fair pay and rest periods for their ensemble at their particular theatre? And should they think about the ecological footprint of their production? Are privileged directors prepared to draw conclusions in favour of directors from non-privileged groups and, for example, forego an engagement?

Limits for directors?!

Even though directors and theatres should refuse to be put at the service of politics, ideology or morals, they can contribute to a necessary global change in values and invent new and different stories, and tell stories about how to make the world a better place. The contents and forms of these stories call for things that have not yet been

ASSITEJ – DIRECTORS IN TYA | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 17

LEARNING WITH AND FROM ONE ANOTHER An international exchange of directors in TYA

by Christel Hoffmann, Wolfgang Schneider and Annett Israel

The role of directors in TYA features regularly in ASSITEJ Germany’s activities. Since the International Directors’ Seminar – now renamed Directors in TYA – An International Exchange – was established in 1976, directors from all over the world meet every other year. During this time, 531 directors of TYA from 81 countries from all 5 continents took part. Annett Israel witnessed a conversation Prof. Dr. Christel Hoffmann and Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schneider in December 2019 in Berlin. Photo: Annett Israel

between Wolfgang Schneider, Honorary President of ASSITEJ, and Christel Hoffmann, co-initiator and conceptual partner of ASSITEJ’s oldest international event, about the idea of learning, openness and the universality of themes and questions.

Wolfgang Schneider: What was the idea behind an international

WS: The Directors’ Seminars were about the artistic development,

seminar for directors?

not only of the invited directors, but of children’s and young people’s theatre in general. What was important for you?

Christel Hoffmann: In 1976 in the GDR (translator’s note: East Germany) we considered initiating a directing seminar. Initially this

CH: The International Directors’ Seminar is in fact ASSITEJ’s oldest

should take place among directors from Eastern European countries

artistic and scholarly event, nationally and internationally. It was the

who were powerful people in the theatre in the 1970s and who were

goal of ASSITEJ as a whole, as agreed in the General Assembly, that

solely responsible for the artistic outcome. It was intended as an op-

children’s and young people’s theatre must emancipate itself and es-

portunity to discuss directing in the context of young audiences.

tablish itself as an artistic entity. Today, it is still regarded as artistically secondary in some circles.

WS: At the time it was attended by directors from all socialist countries, but also by all five major children’s and youth theatres in the

WS: What were the discussions about?

GDR. CH: In the 1970s they were about methods and rehearsal work in CH: The aim was to find an artistic form of expression that correspond-

the context of young audiences. Adult directors were faced with chal-

ed to the receptiveness of children and young people and to examine

lenges like, for example, “Are young audiences able to read artistic

the interaction between the actors on stage and their young audiences.

codes?”

Participants of the International Directors’ Seminar 1981 in East-Berlin.

Photo: Archive of KJTZ

In the 1980s it was also about the emancipation of actors as

CH: There were no workshop leaders, but rather established and ex-

the directors’ closest partners and the actual creators of the shows,

perienced practitioners who needed to communicate and exchange

who, in their capacity as children’s theatre performers, received little

their thoughts and methods in a free and open form. The fact that

or no social recognition.

all the invited directors have been equal has certainly been the secret of the seminar’s success over the years.

WS: From 1978 directors from Spain, Belgium, West Germany, and

In 1990 the Wall had fallen. Jörg Richard, a professor in Bre-

later also from other Western countries, were represented. When you

men and at the time deputy chairman of ASSITEJ Germany, gave a

look back on German-German relations in the Directors’ Seminar, do

lecture...

you remember encounters and arguments that were important to you?

WS: ... on “Childhood Images in Theatre”, the topic of the seminar.

CH: In West Berlin there was the GRIPS Theater. I had a very close relationship with these colleagues, because we also wanted to devel-

CH: That was new. It was based on Neil Postman and his book The

op plays that dealt with current problems faced by children and

Disappearance of Childhood. At that time we also included theatre

young people. At the time it was impossible for us in the GDR to

with children and went on excursions to children’s cultural centres

deal with the conflicts that GRIPS staged with such honesty and

in East and West Berlin.

from the perspective of the children.

WS: The different seminar topics over this long period of time make WS: Can you describe the consequences for children’s and youth

it clear that TYA is an essential accompanying factor in social trans-

theatre in the GDR in the late 1980s and early 1990s?

formation processes.

CH: In May 1989 we held an extended International Directors’ Semi-

CH: Freiburg 1995: The situation of the theatres and their structure

nar: “Can contemporary children’s and young people’s theatre pro-

made it possible to think differently about the seminar. Ever since

mote the development of individual identity by searching for a better

then the International Director’s Seminar has taken place in different

ethnic and cultural awareness?” At the 1987 ASSITEJ General As-

venues linked to a host theatre in Germany.

sembly it was decided that this issue should be on the agenda of all national centers for three years.

WS: Municipal theatres and communal theatres have not been the

A few months before the fall of the Berlin Wall, 31 countries

only ones to invite participants to the directing seminar, but also in-

were represented by individual theatre directors, some from East

dependent companies and TYA departments within municipal the-

Asia. With reference to the theme of identity, we discussed, among

atres. The host companies with their artistic signatures were an in-

other things, the thesis that the media do not create identity, but turn

tegral part of the concept.

us into consumers. This topic is still relevant today.

How did you manage to make the diverse ideas and practices of directors from all over the world resonate with each other?

WS: This seminar was a milestone in the debate about the future of children’s theatre. Can you tell us how you discussed differences in

CH: Since the 1990s it has no longer been about narrow directing

theatrical ideas?

issues. We have been looking for overarching themes. Basically,

Participants of the International Directors’ Seminar 2017 in Oldenburg.

Photo: Theater Wrede, Oldenburg

there were two complexes that had to do with the thematic expansion

WS: The openness of these encounters and the idea of the experi-

of the repertoire and with aesthetic means.

ment allow us to create opportunities to interact and cooperate with

In 1995 the theme was “Farewell, Mourning Death”.

people who come from other places, geographically, historically and

Whether or not children should be confronted with such a topic was

culturally. ASSITEJ Germany and its many hundreds of member

hotly debated among children’s and young people’s theatre makers

theatres are happy to continue to be hosts!

in Germany. It was fascinating to get to know the cultural differences on the subject of death. We Germans have the frightening Grim Reaper as the symbol of death, whereas Italians encounter a loving woman. Mexicans stage a joyful celebration. Next to them, there are

Prof. Dr. Christel Hoffmann was for many years the chief dramaturg at East German Theater der

the theatre makers from Asia, whose theatrical symbol for death is

Freundschaft in Berlin, head of the National Office for International Questions Relating to Chil-

a dragon. That was an enriching experience.

dren’s and Young People’s Theatre (ASSITEJ) and later head of the Berlin office of the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Centre in the Federal Republic of Germany. She was the co-initiator

WS: In Kiel in 1997 the topic was “Artistic codes in theatre for the

and conceptual advisor of the International Directors’ Seminar until 2011.

very young”. In 2001 in Nuremberg there was a directing seminar on “Fear and Hope – The staged reality of children”.

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schneider was the first director of the Institute for Cultural Policy at the University of Hildesheim, where he is also the holder of the UNESCO chair in “Cultural Policy for the Arts

CH: As a delegate of their respective national centres of ASSITEJ,

in Development”. He was founding director of the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Centre in

each participating director had the job of representing their country.

the Federal Republic of Germany (1989 – 1997), chairman of ASSITEJ Germany and president of

We were looking for a sensual approach to the seminar and

ASSITEJ international (2002 – 2011).

came up with the idea that everyone should bring a picture of a child and together we would allow this child to grow up. That is, we jointly

Annett Israel works at the Berlin office of the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Centre in the

portrayed the various rituals of birth, birthday parties, starting

Federal Republic of Germany.

school, etc., i.e. the whole process of growing up. Participants in Directors in TYA – An International Exchange still present their cultural roots right at the start. Where do the participants come from, in which context do they stage their shows? This is important in order to understand and learn from one another.

WS: From 2009 onwards, the focus was on the world, on socio-political issues: Hamburg 2009 “Migration stories”; 2011 in Cologne “Money makes the world go round”; 2013 Frankfurt “What do we

Pp. 20/21

mean by ‘Home’”; 2015 in Mannheim “Progress”.

Thom Browning is a theater artist, producer and artistic director of the Imaginary Theater in Brisbane (Australia). He was a participant in the Workshop Directors in TYA – An International

CH: And 30 years after the fall of the Wall in Germany, the International

Exchange on the topic of “Walls” in Berlin in 2019 and has visualized his memories of this

Directors’ Seminar returned to Berlin in 2019. Its theme was “Walls”.

experience for us on the following pages.

… THEN WE CAN STIR THINGS UP!

Nora Tosconi, Manuela Runge and Wera Mahne discuss directing and inclusive theatre work

Manuela Runge works in Zurich (Switzerland) as a theatre and dance pedagogue with children, young people and adults in various groups in which people with and without disabilities dance and play theatre together.

Wera Mahne lives in Düsseldorf (Germany) as a theatre director, especially in the area of children’s and young people’s theatre. Deaf people are often involved in her productions. Her work gets called inclusive then. Sign language and spoken language play an artistic and aesthetic role.

Nora Tosconi is an actor, clown and director and has worked at Theater Hora (Switzerland). She has been involved in theatre since childhood and has gained a lot of stage experience, in dance and theatre productions with actors with and without a handicap. She has worked with the director Milo Rau as an actor at Schauspielhaus Zurich and worked as a director at Theater Hora.

PERSPECTIVES | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 23

Left side: Scene from Mädchen wie die (Girls Like That) by Evan Placey, Junges Schauspiel Hannover, directed by Wera Mahne. Photo: Karl-Bernd Karwasz

This conversation is also inclusive!

portant that you take the same path together, that it’s not just directors who say, “Now we’re going to do it this way”, but that they also

Nora Tosconi: I’ve learnt a new word today. I never really knew what

respond to the performers, note the ability and source of the indi-

it was: “Inclusion”.

vidual actors and what’s going on inside them. The director is also responsible for promoting their special skills and abilities.

Manuela Runge: I understand inclusive work to mean that people with different abilities and interests come together for a purpose

MR: You once told me you thought it was cool that as a director you

and work as artistic equals. It’s not about that people changing or

were allowed to decide what happens on stage.

fitting in.

NT: Yes, but that’s also difficult. I have to think about and decide NT: Great.

what I want to do and then I have to convey that and there’s a kind of a middle ground, another point where you meet each other, like

MR: For me it’s also a matter of attitude. No matter how or with

another level, so that something can be created. That is where the

whom I work, it should always be inclusive. That’s what I strive and

art starts. It’ s interesting when it’ s different.

wish for.

WM: This magazine has the theme “directing”! But we have been Wera Mahne: For me inclusion means quite specifically that I give

asked to exchange views on direction and inclusion for this maga-

equal rights to all the people I am working with. In the case of deaf

zine. Actually, I don’t usually want my work to be titled like that.

people, for example, that means first and foremost that an inter-

The moment I start doing a production with someone who’s

preter has to be present or that I have to speak sign language and ev-

a little different from everyone else, for example, who’s in a

eryone else too.

wheelchair, then they say, aha cool, we’ll put a stamp on it – inclusion, because that’s not normal.

MR: In the DanceAbility method, a dance method that is accessible to all people, inclusion means exploring the common denominator

NT: There always has to be a label on whats happening. By now I am

on which the artistic work is based. Starting from the common de-

above that.

nominator (what everyone can do) we develop a common dance language, which we can work artistically.

There was once a newspaper report about me that went: “Learning-disabled but nevertheless a student” If I had read that earlier, I would have been more annoyed to be categorised like that. I

NT: ... or on which you can come together.

know that I have a handicap, but that makes me stronger elsewhere.

Society, the newspaper and the media think in categories, but it de-

WM: Figuratively speaking you open your arms and say, look – what

pends on how you view yourself and don’t let yourself be irritated by

can we do here? You provide the conditions that make things possi-

all this handicap drivel any longer. Now I’m laughing because some-

ble. Curiosity and patience are particularly important for everyone.

one’s got to find another title. It comes from our uncertainty, because

Nora, what do you focus on when you direct? What is impor-

it is something unknown and impossible to classify. Open the draw-

tant to you?

er, pop it in. There you go.

NT: The director laeds, but the performers can also be active. You

WM: The last play I staged with my group “Leute wie die” (People

wake up as if you were in a play together. I think it’s even more im-

like that) was called I’m Penguin. It was for children from the age

24 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | PERSPECTIVES

MR: You can avoid a lot of things, like people developing fears and barriers in their minds. The earlier opportunities for encounters take place, the better. We still need the term inclusive because our society is exclusive.

NT: It takes time and patience. The world is changing, something is Workshop for the staging of Almost Home, Verein TANZflug. Photo: Manuela Runge

already happening! By working together, we can stir things up!

of four upwards. My deaf colleague Pia Jendreizik plays a penguin.

WM: That’s a great description: stirring up the very normative the-

This play doesn’t use language, which means that you don’t neces-

atre and introducing diversity. That inevitably means that there is a

sarily realize that Pia can’t hear. At the end of the play there is a short

different reality on stage and in the work. New points of contact and

follow-up discussion where the children learn what it means to com-

aspects that can be used in artistic work.

municate in sign language with an interpreter.

In the audience it doesn’t matter if the children are deaf or

NT: I think directors with a handicap should be a normal occurrence.

not, provided they can all experience the performance together. It is

I see some progress already, but it has to spread much more. When

not only about art, it is also about very young children having such

I look around, there are already more than in my childhood.

an experience and taking it into their lives as a consciousness opener.

Theatre can be a utopian space where not everything has to be separated socially. It can therefore be a model for the real

WM: What are your wishes for children’s and young people’s theatre in German-speaking countries?

world.

MR: I would like to see cultural education be given an added value Scene from the cycle Freie Republik HORA – Phase 3 Theater Hora Zürich (CH). Photo: Niklaus

in schools and that children have much more contact with theatre

Spoerri

and art. I would like children and young people with or without disabilities to have equal access to art and culture, and I would like this to be enshrined in the educational system.

WM: There should be more professional opportunities and training courses where people with disabilities can participate. And they should also be given positions in dramaturgy and directing, where they can make their own decisions. I would like to see all theatre makers having the courage to experiment and make room for them.

What would emerge would be so exciting. I would love to see that.

NT: I wish that people would be more courageous and manifest their thoughts. I think it’s good when different sorts of children come into contact with each other and see different kinds of theatre.

I’d love it all to become a self-evident, everyday normality.

That the people are not so much influenced by normativity.

PERSPECTIVES | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 25

A NEW FRAGILE LANGUAGE Directing young actors

by Constance Cauers

As a rule, children and adolescents are not trained actors – and that’s good. When they are on stage it is essential to be able to grasp the necessity of their presence on the basis of the production’s thematic and aesthetic orientation. What perspectives on a theme can young actors give that I cannot relate with a trained professional ensemble?

And through which form of directing can that perspective be brought onto the stage?

In order to strengthen the young protagonists’ very specific expertise and make it shine on stage, I have to maintain an openness and transparency in my work, allowing myself to be inspired, guided and constantly touched by the uniqueness of their young personalities. For me, this means that the suggestions of all those involved in a production have the same value – even if they are not always equally reflected in the production. I approach them without prejudice, even when they often do not correspond with my aesthetic ideas. In a process of exploration we try to find a new artistic language for each particular issue. This does not mean either sacrificing myself or giving up my leading function. There is no doubt that I am responsible for the performers and their protection on stage.

A rehearsal process with young performers is a voyage of research. It is in the nature of things that this sometimes involves a considerable amount of material suggestions and scenic translations, of which only a few selected ones will ultimately be used. Trial and error, evaluation and rethinking: everything is open until the very end. And I do not spare my actors this theatrical reality, although this is not always pleasant – and sometimes very exhausting – for

Young people are researchers and visionaries for

everyone. No one has any claim to the scenes or texts that he or she

certain issues. Interestingly, not only those issues

forward.

that dock directly onto their own living realities.

Because of their vulnerability and constant struggles with the challenges of adolescence, they have a decisive influence on the course of a theatre production. Their special physicality, which is not shaped by years of actor’s training, plays a major role here.

has developed. Only something with substance can drive the issue I seldom use literary templates. And yes, I do choose themes in which children or young people can find themselves, and research these themes with the ensemble. However, just because young people can identify with a theme does not mean that I learn a lot of new things from them in conversation. Young people in particular often have no precise idea of what makes their life circumstances so exScene from Ausblick nach oben (Outlook Upwards), Volkstheater Wien (AT), directed by Constance Cauers and Malte Andritter. Photo: Robert Polster

26 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | PERSPECTIVES

traordinary for adults. This is understandable, because they are in

That said, biographical research alone is not an artistic work-

search of their own identity and are not yet able to look and talk ob-

ing method: young people who tell personal stories on stage do not

jectively about themselves and the present time.

yet provide any added value for the audience. Especially not if they

The thematic orientation should provide a source of friction which creates a tension between the young researchers and the issue

are not put in a position to create a distance to the experience due to a failure to aestheticise the personal material.

at hand. The challenge lies in stimulating processes that question our

It is my task to ensure that young actors are not helplessly

previous knowledge anew. I am not looking for everyday life, but for

and defencelessly confronted with content from which they cannot

unsuccessful life plans, for deviating models and living realities.

distance themselves. Through my expertise I am able to provide

Here, as a leader, I take on an impulse-giving role: empathy and a sin-

them with theatrical means that help to formalise their approaches.

It becomes problematic when I expect them to fill a given artistic form. On the contrary, the form should rather help them to reveal how they can approach a topic. If I fail to find this form, the recipients usually feel embarrassed rather than enriched. It fills me with joy to see young actors thinking on stage. Like them, I want to create connections and negotiate topics. I am interested in their contradictory expectations and how they show these contradictions.

The love of the imperfect, the unpredictable and the casual is what makes directing with young people so appealing to me. The fact that rehearsal processes with young actors are rarely hermetically sealed spaces often plays into my hands. Plans and times can be prepared as well as possible, but these can be tripped up at any time by having to learn for a maths exam, worried parents and a first love-sickness. Young people’s living environments determine, shape my work and influence it. These are not disturbing factors, but provide material that can be used.

Scene from Bodybild!, Schauburg – Theater für junges Publikum der Landeshauptstadt München, directed by Daniel Pfluger. Photo: Judith Buss

In my productions, children and young people not only function in the form of a collective authorship. Rather, they create a personal approach to a topic that resembles a new, fragile language in

cere interest in young people and their questions about life are the

terms of content and aesthetics. Their everyday realities always res-

basic prerequisites for enriching everyone’s artistic work processes.

onate with them.

I share my inner connection to the theme with young protagonists but do not negate my experiential advantage. I share questions, irritations and thoughts: what are my concerns and attitudes, where are the differences of opinion I would like to discuss and por-

Constance Cauers is a theatre pedagogue. Since 2015/16 she is director of Junges Volkstheater in

tray? By consciously adopting a controversial attitude I can also in-

Vienna (Austria) and Chair of ASSITEJ Austria since February 2019.

duce a change of perspective in the genesis of the text. This usually leads to the participants gaining a reflexive understanding of themselves and others.

PERSPECTIVES | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 27

WHO DECIDES TODAY? Searching for collective artistic responsibility in traditionally hierarchical structures

by Lisa Zehetner

Institutionalized theatres in Germany are hierarchically structured. When we consider how many creative minds are involved in a single production, it is regrettable how few of them are allowed to be acti-

My theatre life began in an independent production company where the director’s position in the classical sense did not exist. The idea of the company was that it invited artistic collectives to produce their shows at our venue and with our professional support. Artistic collectives came and tested concepts, questions and aesthetics and they were supported and curated by the host company’s dramaturgs.

vely involved in making artistic decisions and ulti-

Thus, classical direction was rarely put into practice here. It was not

mately take responsibility for them. My thesis is that

this experience had been. As a dramaturg at the Young National The-

the people in these theatre structures have the competence and strength to work in a different manner.

until I took a job at a municipal theatre that I realized how formative

Scene from Pinocchio, Junges Nationaltheater Mannheim, directed by Monster Truck. Photo: Christian Kleiner

28 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | PERSPECTIVES

atre in Mannheim, I now try (alongside the artistic director Ulrike

who had had no previous experience of working in a municipal the-

Stöck and the team), to take a more collective view of the theatre as

atre. In their previous freelance productions, the group completely

an institution and to ensure that the various artistic and organisa-

renounced the term “director” or “artistic director”. It is a “by & with”

tional expertise is jointly responsible for the artistic processes. To-

and at most an enumeration of expertise such as stage, costume or

gether we have started to make the Young Theatre in Mannheim

production management. Fundamental things were discussed and

more diverse in its artistic disciplines and more open in its structures

questioned: what are the standards in municipal theatre? From set

and to open up experimental spaces for artistic processes. We have

rehearsals to concept rehearsals, the question of the sense of split

also sought to ask whether co-responsibility is desirable and, if so,

rehearsal times and final rehearsal planning, all the way to the ques-

up to what point. But what does this mean in concrete terms?

tion of how to cast a production if you don’t even know the performers

Initially, there was an impulse to invite artists who work in

when you come from outside. At the start, the only thing that was

freelance teams or collectives as director collectives and let them

certain was that the ensuing show should be aimed at young people

stage their work – in other words, to bring non-hierarchical working

aged 13 and over. The primary principle at the Young National The-

methods into our institution. The work began with collectives like

atre Mannheim is that the artistic director and the dramaturgs do

Monster Truck, subbotnik, James & Priscilla, compagnie toit végétal

not determine and assign contents and themes, but rather seek artis-

and Turbo Pascal and with independent artists like Wicki Bernhardt

tic working methods that they find exciting for their audience, in

or Tümay Kılınçel, and, simultaneously for me, based on research

order to develop the theme or the material jointly with the artists.

and a try-and-error principle. The collectives were also breaking new

With the independent theatre company James & Priscilla we

ground, for they have rarely ever worked in classical directorial po-

adapted the high school film genre. We decided that one member of

sitions. Outside the municipal theatre they are usually performers,

James & Priscilla would perform alongside four other players from

set designers, dramaturgs and artistic directors all rolled into one.

our ensemble. The daily rehearsal routine looked different: Each re-

And now they were to bring their ideas into the framework of an in-

hearsal began with a “check in” by all those present in which they

stitution with established hierarchies and a strict division of labour

shared their moods, experiences, feelings of happiness or even dis-

and to stage a play with actors from our ensemble.

content without comments from the others. Afterwards James &

We are all now looking for our new roles in these artistic en-

Priscilla’s team adopted a system whereby they took it in turn to be

counters. Where is the place, the role and the responsibility, for ex-

“rehearsal dictators”. This meant that every day a different person

ample, for a dramaturg to collaborate? How can performers, theatre

prepared the structure of the rehearsal, took over the leadership,

pedagogues and technicians be conceptually involved in the process-

made any necessary decisions and assigned tasks. In my opinion,

es at an earlier stage? How exactly does the work of the collective

this system worked impressively well, because in this way many voic-

function when you are no longer on stage yourself? How exactly can

es and perspectives were brought to bear, power was distributed and

we share duties and responsibilities during rehearsals? And who ac-

much was learned about the individual artistic personalities. The ac-

tually makes the final decisions in the final rehearsals, or are deci-

tors accepted the system completely. And yet the direction was hier-

sion-makers no longer needed? What can we, as a municipal young

archical, because the “rehearsal dictators” were four members from

people's theatrea company, learn from the working methods of

James & Priscilla and not members of the Young NTM. The four-

the collectives? How can we perceive ourselves as a collective and

some process ran off smoothly without any confusion of conflicting

restructure our organization?

ideas. In the future there will be a further cooperation between

One practical example from Mannheim, which in my opin-

James & Priscilla and the Young NTM. I’m interested in how we can

ion has worked outstandingly well, both artistically and collectively,

manage to involve the actors and the team even earlier in the creation

is provided by the independent theatre collective James & Priscilla,

process and enable a greater artistic co-responsibility. After all, if four

Scene from Easy Baby, Junges Nationaltheater Mannheim, directed by James & Priscilla. Photo: Christian Kleiner

directors have managed to work together, how can we share the associated power and responsibility even more?

One thing is certain. We need a more intensive phase to involve the actors, technicians and others involved in the production

A second good example is our collaboration with Monster

before the rehearsals begin. How to then conduct the directing in

Truck, which I think has resulted in a provocative and wonderfully

the final rehearsals, or involve the other sections involved in the final

irritating production for a young audience: Monster Truck is a free

rehearsals in the working process, will have to decided on by the

collective, with a fluid membership structure constantly changing

team.

around the two-person core team. This means that the production

For me, sustainable, long-lasting and repeated collaboration

team collective is constantly forced to find itself anew. Monster Truck

is a central aspect in the collaboration between municipal theatres

had already had some experience of working in a municipal theatre,

and independent artistic collectives working as a directorial collec-

but this was the first time it had come up against children’s and

tive. You just have to start and have the courage to clearly evaluate pro-

young people’s theatre. Here, too, there was an introductory work-

cesses before developing them step by step. And you have to empower

shop with members from the ensemble that we had chosen in ad-

the actors and the other permanent staff members artistically. These

vance. When the various concepts were put forward there was still

experiments are potentially very exciting, despite the risk of failing.

no text, only a rehearsal principle that allowed us to try out concep-

In my opinion, non-hierarchical directing practice in insti-

tual questions. The actors were turned into a show band, wrote and

tutionalised theatres does not yet exist, but there are ideas and at-

practised songs, while Monster Truck worked on the game design

tempts to gradually break away from outdated power structures and

and the text. The groups met repeatedly to discuss and give each

listen to all those involved, whether they be actors, designers, art

other feedback. Then the two levels merged and Monster Truck

mediators or technicians. To achieve this, however, the system

made it clear that they would not be taking on classic directorial

would first have to admit that sooner or later it would otherwise be-

tasks, but that the actors as experts would put the parts together

come irrelevant – in terms of democratisation, equality and even di-

themselves and Monster Truck would provide descriptions and feed-

versity.

back. Everybody gave their spontaneous opinions and the actors came to their own decisions. Only in the final rehearsals did the system falter, because the normative expectation was that the directorial collective would say what they wanted and make the final

Lisa Zehetner is a dramaturg at the Young National Theatre Mannheim. She is a board member of

decisions.

ASSITEJ Germany.

30 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | PERSPECTIVES

LETTER TO …

… an unknown author

… an unknown director

by Martin Grünheit

by Christina Kettering

I heard you were dead. If you are dead, you cannot answer this letter.

Dear colleague,

You couldn’t even read it or receive it. So maybe I am writing these

I am delighted that we will be developing a play for the TYA together

lines into emptiness, writing for me. But not for me alone. These lines

and that we are both willing to enter into an open and equal process.

are lines that I was asked to write, for which I will get something – at-

I would like us to find a structure that leaves us the freedom and

tention maybe, and a little money. They are lines or words that bring

time to tackle unsolved questions, in which we can search, experi-

me closer to what you once were. So will I also die doing this? Will I

ment, discuss, fail and start again together: and in which ambiguous

experience the same fate as you if I now write a published letter? Would

and unpredictable aspects also have their place. I hope that it will

I then instantly become a writer? An author? Director and author – that

not be the curriculum and preferences of teachers that inspire us

sounds tempting as a self-description – Established and educated. Do

in our work, but rather the interests and perspectives of our audi-

I want to be an author? Do I want to die? Are you really dead?

ence who will support us as experts and question us and our cosmos.

I don’t recognize you anymore. You have become so many

Theatre, as I understand it, is not there simply to provide

people. You’ve become a Whatsapp chat, a Facebook feed, a Twitter

answers. Its purpose is to bring contradictions onto the stage, to

thread, an absolute real-time simulation. You’re a pool of biogra-

fathom the interstices, the unclear and the mysterious. It is not in-

phies, you’re something lived. In the past. You’re something that is

tended to educate, but to stimulate a person’s own thinking and sen-

promoted in theatres, they allow your words to condense or com-

sory experiences. For children and young people who are growing

press the experiences everyone around you are living. And I – as a

up in a polarised world, in which many often have the answer before

director – come along and am asked by the theatres that support you

the question is asked, theatre can offer the possibility of an open

(or the foundations you belong to) to compress your writing even

space for thinking – without the necessity of achieving a specific

further. Your poetry is pre-compressed. It’s a poetry that – at least

educational objective. In TYA we have the great advantage of reach-

in the theatre – is not yet completely packed up.

ing an audience from all walks of life: young people whose experiences, perspectives of the world and opinions are as diverse as they

Scene from Die Biene im Kopf (The Bee in the Head) by Roland Schimmelpfenning, Theater an der

are themselves. We will not like all of these opinions. I know from

Parkaue, Berlin, directed by Martin Grünheit. Photo: Christian Brachwitz

practical experience with young people from different districts of Berlin that it can be quite difficult to be confronted with a view that shocks you, and then not to reject this view as wrong but to understand it as an opportunity to discuss the matter. But if we are prepared to get involved, it will not only be a gain for a democratic debate, but also for the quality of our work.

I therefore imagine that our work will be preceded by a detailed preparatory phase in which the young audience is involved in developing the topic. For example, in discussions of whatever kind in which a topic can be controversially and openly debated. And that we subsequently search for the best aesthetic form for this on

PERSPECTIVES | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 31

In the theatre there’s a saying: whoever writes, stays. Where are you? Where can I find you? Shall we meet for a coffee sometime? I could simply tell you about my concept and then you could tell me if it is smth you can work with, or suggestions you might have if you think it is a good start. Did it all start like this between us? You, enjoying a coffee and having a smoke? Do you still smoke?

Your authority is no match for everyday life. Actors don’t want to learn lines by heart anymore, they want to act. That’s all they have time for in this theatre machine. I can understand them perfectly. And yet I can still hear the beauty of your words passing through actors’ mouths. I can imagine the echo of your words in the expressions on the faces of the audience. I can see them perking up their ears. To share in what was once your world. I see how they are interested in situations. And also, how their attention follows an economy that needed you to die …

So maybe you die after every performance, like a cat; after every text spoken on your account, a death. You’re willing to risk your existence every time. When Aristotle writes the human being

Scene from Weiss ist keine Farbe (White is Not a Color) by Christina Kettering, Comedia Theater

manifests itself at the “transition from voice to language”, and lan-

Köln, directed by Markolf Naujoks. Photo: Meyer Originals

guage being what you are, is human. You are always ready to give up this being a human as a gift for others. In a way you are the living

the basis of the material that the audience has asked us to deal with.

dead, lost inside the text, lost to the world, a quotation. You come

Despite the openness of the process, I regard my role in it as the au-

alive in the moment in which you are quoted or recited; when you

thor who creates a literary text. I want it to have linguistic quality

are read or spoken. The theatre is your fleeting resurrection, or a

and complexity of content. I believe that the text as an art form gives

disturbance to your Rest In Peace.

a play an additional level, and that the more open each form – tex-

After we had our last coffee for the upcoming project, you

tual, directorial, musical, visual – is to the others, the more they all

had a DEADline (*lol*) for another project, one where you were

relate to each other – also in terms of the friction between them –

working on your own accord, independently. Your profession was

and the more they maintain their own strong aesthetic.

so special and yet not special at all. If I do dare to develop a play, per-

I would like us to argue about the text and the staging, to de-

haps it’s your death that I’ll miss; that the audience and the actors

velop it together, to let other art forms collide with it and thus try to

might miss: the authority of your constant deaths and the urgency

create a total work of art that challenges its audience.

of your fleeting resurrections. Whether I truly miss it or not remains to be seen. Maybe I would have to die for it, too.

Sent by Gmail on my mobile Martin Grünheit, freelance director, lives in Berlin, works at various theaters for young audiences in Germany and is co-founder of the theater network cobratheater.cobra.

And I hope that conversely, we will be willing to be challenged by our audience.

Let’s get started!

Christina Kettering is a playwright and freelance dramaturg. She lives in Berlin.

32 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | POSITIONS

SHARED PLAYGROUNDS Four directors share their enthusiasm for theatrical teamwork

by Romy Weyrauch, Hannah Biedermann, Franziska Henschel, Ariel Doron

Four very different directors. Four different approaches. Boundless enthusiasm for theatre.

We asked them how they create the framework for working creatively on their artistic ideas with a team.

Romy Weyrauch director and theatre maker (Dresden and Berlin): Scene from abstracts of men, Theater 11. August, Hildesheim, directed by Romy Weyrauch.

The first important task is to put to-

Photo: Andreas Hartmann

gether a production team according

Photo: Romy Weyrauch

to the respective concept. This is so

for what each actor brings into the process. The balancing act con-

decisive for the artistic process be-

sists in neither losing thematic sharpness nor the feeling for sur-

cause at the beginning of my theatre

prises and the unknown. In the end, an artistic responsibility

productions there is usually no (clas-

emerges on all sides, which at best is contagious and intoxicating,

sical) dramatic text, as is customary in literary theatre, but rather a

and which must of course also find its reflection in the credits.

social issue, a thesis or observation that I would like to investigate.

To do this, I work with professional and non-professional performers

Hannah Biedermann

who always have a special personal connection to the topic, whom

freelance director and director of the

I find in a time-consuming process and who are involved in the work

independent theatre group pulk fiktion

on the content from the outset. In the discursive theatre play 1989

(Cologne):

[exit ghost] , for example, representatives of the 3rd Generation East – born in the former GDR (East Germany) between 1975 and 1985 –

I believe neither in the cult of genius

dealt with the collapse of state socialism. In abstracts of men three ac-

nor in the wisdom of the collective.

tors of different ages took up the public debate on the identity crisis of masculinity. It is a characteristic of my work that the content of

And I believe more in finding things Photo: Inga Geiser

out rather than in inventing them.

the plays we develop is always closely linked to the respective partic-

This means that I try to arrange all

ipants. This is exactly what has always appealed to me: theatre is

my rehearsal processes, whether in a municipal theatre or with my

teamwork and draws on it. Even more so: the team is the very con-

own independent theatre company, in such a way that I offer a con-

dition for it to take shape and become what it is. The special creative

text in which every artist can experiment freely without having to ac-

potential of theatre is shown in the space that opens up when differ-

complish anything. The framework consists of thematic instructions

ent individuals come together for a certain period of time. I therefore

for action, rules of the game, fixed materials to enable me to find

design concepts in such a way that they contain gaps to make room

something in the improvisations.

POSITIONS | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | 33

An actor once paid me a nice compliment: “With you, we don’t

I am more a dramaturg than a director. Only little by little do I take

improvise in a vacuum, put in all the work and get nothing back

over the aesthetic direction and make decisions, if necessary even

in return, or don’t know why we are doing it anyway. With you,

against the group.

every task is explained and every improvisation is carefully disFranziska Henschel

cussed and carefully put on a shelf to get it out again sometime.”

freelance director from Hamburg:

Briefings are at least as important for me as the production itself. They help us to find a common vocabulary and criteria for what is being sought. By describing the way you play yourself, but

1. As long as the material for the piece

also by observing and describing the playing of others, we can come

is being developed, there are only ac-

closer to finding a common vision.

tors, and not spectators, in the team.

During the development of the play, the actors as well as those responsible Photo: Sophie Wanninger

for stage design, costume, music, dramaturgy, assistants, choreogra-

phy, direction are invited and encouraged to participate in training, thinking, improvisation and the collective writing of texts. Everyone makes themselves equally useful and vulnerable.

2. During the first weeks of research, improvisation and development any feedback is strictly non-verbal and positive. All participants write or sketch on Post-its the moments, images, texts, sentences, movements and objects that they found remarkable, and where they see potential. At the end of a rehearsal, these notes are Scene from Irgendwie anders (Somehow Different), Junges Schauspielhaus Düsseldorf, directed by

placed one after the other on the wall and related to each other.

Franziska Henschel. Photo: Franziska Henschel Scene from All About Nothing, pulk fiktion, Cologne, directed by Hannah Biedermann. Photo:

The process within my independent theatre company pulk fiktion is somewhat different and yet similar. Usually, all those involved in the production are already involved in the phase of conceiving a play. Aesthetic approaches are set by the participating artists and their individual preferences (“hobbyhorses”). Here I am sometimes the one who has to fall in love with an idea first, who has to be brought on board. Weeks before the rehearsal period begins, the team meets, exchanges aesthetic ideas and thinks about how everything could fit together. My task is to guarantee the focus on the contents. The process is similar. The individual artists contribute their ideas and resources autonomously and responsibly and also take over responsibility for directing rehearsal sequences. I listen and watch, ask questions and insist on what we are trying to say. At first

Christoph Wolff

34 | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2020 | POSITIONS

A kind of mind map is created, which is overwritten after three days.

We sort out everything that no longer tells us anything (from our own notes) or has already got its part in the play. And what still seems relevant, remains and comes into contact with the new notes.

3. In order to be able to freely test emerging ideas, I set up an hour of “free work” per day, an hour during which I, as the director, make neither stipulations nor suggestions and where everyone (including myself) can do what he or she finds most important or exciting (for the play, of course) , in the same room, completely independent of everything, including his or her function in the team.

Often interesting constellations of cooperation and exciting material arise during this time, a space for pursuing a thought that no one (yet) has to share – mutual inspiration, but also idleness, which often becomes the motor for really wacky images and ideas.

Scene from Besuchszeit vorbei (Visiting Hours Are Over), tjg. theater junge generation Dresden, directed by Ariel Doron. Photo: Marco Prill

Ariel Doron puppeteer, director and performer from

time. According to the results and reactions we get, we can then

Israel, currently living and working in

choose how to proceed. In a good rehearsal, we forget the outside

Germany:

world and our whole existence becomes about the ‘sand castle’, i.e. the show we are working on.

Photo: David Campesino

The stage as a playground: We all,

The director and the artistic team have the role of preparing

adults and children alike, love to

the playground, by creating a rehearsal space containing really cool

play: to explore, to look around, to

“toys” (which could be research questions, scenic ideas, puppets,

connect different things in different

stage design etc.) that inspire the artists involved to play with some-

ways and see if they fit in or not, to

thing exciting and challenging for them to explore and discover,

make up rules, set up random goals and practice getting better at them, and to play for no other reason than to spend time with our friends.

alone and with each other.

The challenge is to create an environment in which everybody has an equal chance to play, contribute and even change the

While maintaining a playful attitude in adult daily life is not

rules of the game during the game itself, while still taking the role

always easy, luckily for us theatre people we have a fantastic play-

of a responsible adult : i.e. being attentive both to each individual’s

ground we can always go to – the stage! We enter it like children en-

needs and the needs of the entire group, but also constantly checking

tering a new room, playing with everything we come across; the

and ensuring that the group and the game we are playing are still on

space, the objects in it, our human bodies, the lights, the sounds,

the same path to our self-imposed goal, even when this is dynamic

the costumes... We have so many possibilities and different ways to

and constantly changing.

mix, move and explore these ‘theatrical ingredients’, which are to us,

When we manage to create a true collaboration allowing

in a rehearsal, the same as sand or Lego bricks to children who are

space for everyone s ideas we will then have compiled a unique

trying to build a castle. We move them around and connect them in

“game” or play, that would have never been the same with a different

different ways, construct and take apart, and see what happens each

group of individuals. A one-of-a-kind sandcastle!

ABOUT US | IMPRINT | IXYPSILONZETT | 01.2019 | 35 BEYOND ARCHIVE AND LIBRARY The collection of the Children and Young People’s Theatre Centre In The Federal Republic Of Germany

by Anne-Sophie Pieper Since its establishment in 1989 the collection has been an essential part of the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Centre. Supervised by the “Information and Documentation” department, it also stands for active further education and support, the lively exchange of knowledge and experience in the area of TYA.In addition to maintaining and preserving the collections at its locations in Frankfurt am Main and Berlin, its role is to communicate, recall and revive TYA’s rich cultural store of knowledge,. The documents and media provide support for artistic and academic projects and research undertaken by artists and educators, researchers and inquisitive theatre lovers.

Under the direction and scientific supervision of Dr. Jürgen Kirschner, the collection of the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Centre developed into the most important of its kind in Germany over the last 30 years. It consists of three sections: the library, the media library and the archive. In addition to Roberto Frabetti, theater director, director and actor from relevant specialist literature on the Bologna (Italy) visited the KJTZ in Frankfurt am Main in his theory, aesthetics and historiography of function as a member of the EC and treasurer of ASSITEJ in children’s and young people’s theatre, January 2020 and also got information from the collection. the library has an extensive collection Photo: Meike Fechner of bound and digital German-language plays from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day. The contemporary archive of the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre already totals around 100,000 programmes, posters, photographs and various other production-related materials – a stock that continues to grow steadily thanks to regular donations from up to 800 German theatres, independent groups and other theatre-oriented cultural institutions. While the contemporary archive provides valuable insights into the development of the national children’s and young people’s theatre scene over the past decades, individual holdings, such as the historical archive of the GDR (East Germany: 1946–1990) even go back to the 1940s.

The “ASSITEJ International Archives” constitute an important collection and focal point. They offer a rich source of information on the foundation and development of the international organization of ASSITEJ and its global partners. Numerous documents such as correspondence and minutes of meetings, applications and concept papers bear witness to the long-standing activities and promotional initiatives of the World Organisation for Children’s and Young People’s Theatre, and its members on a national level.

In recent years, a considerable part of the documents and media in the collection of the Children’s and Young Faye Kabali-Kagwa, project coordinator, author and story People’s Theatre has already been digicollector from South Africa was a guest in the Berlin project talised and converted into sustainable office and the historical archive of the KJTZ in October 2019 data formats. Data from the collection with documents on children’s and youth theater in the GDR has been made available for research and its international relations. Photo: Annett Israel on the Web and content has been made accessible online in several ways.

The further development of digital mediation formats and the global networking of the cultural heritage of the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre are both challenges and goals for the forward-looking collection management.

Contact: dokumentation@kjtz.de Anne-Sophie Pieper has been in charge of the KJTZ’s work focus on documentation and digitalisation since February 2019.

ASSITEJ BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND E.V. | ASSITEJ Germany ASSITEJ’s mission is to give each child and young person the possibility to go to the theatre at least twice a year. ASSITEJ Germany was founded in 1966 and it has about 400 members. ASSITEJ Germany’s members – professional theatres, venues and independent companies, cultural institutions, publishing houses, universities, researchers, dramatists, directors, journalists – contribute to a positive public recognition and the immense popularity of the performing arts for young audiences. High quality and accessibility for all children and young people are at the heart of their work. ASSITEJ organizes various activities in the field of theatre for young audiences. Among them are workshops and publications (like this one that you are reading right now) and DIRECTORS IN TYA – An International Exchange at a different theatre every other year.

ASSITEJ Germany is run by a board of 11 volunteers. ASSITEJ Germany employs a staff of 10 in the Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Center in the Federal Republic of Germany and a staff of 4 in the project Pathways into Theatre that funds local activities that create access to TYA and the arts in general.

ASSITEJ Bundesrepublik Deutschland e.V. Schützenstrasse 12 60311 Frankfurt am Main . Germany Fon: +49/69/29 15 38 | Fax: +49/29/29 23 54 Email: assitej@kjtz.de Contact: Meike Fechner (Secretary General) m.fechner@kjtz.de www.assitej.de | www.kjtz.de | www.wegeinstheater.de KINDERUND JUGENDTHEATERZENTRUM IN DER BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND (KJTZ) | Children’s and Young People’s Theatre Centre in the Federal Republic of Germany The KJTZ is a unique institution, active both nationally and internationally in developing and promoting theatre for young audiences. The Centre promotes theatre for young people and with young people. It supports artists and educationalists in their theatre work, represents the interests of theatre workers in politics and society, and realizes events like the biennial festival Augenblick mal! or different conferences. The Centre assumes responsibility for the cultural heritage of children’s and young people’s theatre. The archive provides information and advice to artists, students, researchers and others who are interested in the connections between the past of TYA and its present. The Centre is located in Frankfurt/Main and a project office in Berlin. It was founded in 1989 on the initiative of ASSITEJ Germany through the Federal Ministry for Youth Affairs. It is supported by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth from the Federal Children and Young People’s Fund, also by the State of Hesse and the City of Frankfurt.

Kinder- und Jugendtheaterzentrum in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland Schützenstrasse 12 60311 Frankfurt am Main . Germany Fon: +49/69/29 66 61 | Fax: +49/29/29 23 54 Email: zentrum@kjtz.de www.kjtz.de | Blog: kjtz.co | Facebook: fb.com/kjtz.de | Instagram: kinder_u_jugendtheaterzentrum

IMPRESSUM IXYPSILONZETT Das Magazin für Kinderund Jugendtheater 16. Jahrgang Erscheint 3x jährlich – im Januar (das Jahrbuch), Mai und Oktober Redaktionsschluss für dieses Heft: 20. März 2020

Eine Veröffentlichung der ASSITEJ Deutschland / Published by ASSITEJ Germany Herausgeberinnen / Editors: Dr. Birte Werner, Meike Fechner Redaktion / Editorial Office: Nikola Schellmann, Prof. Dr. Gerd Taube (verantwortlich) Übersetzung / Translation: Roy Kift ASSITEJ Germany Schützenstraße 12 60311 Frankfurt/M. www.assitej.de Gestaltung / Design: Grafikdesign Wahrig Verlag / Publisher: Theater der Zeit GmbH, Berlin www.theaterderzeit.de IXYPSILONZETT ist Bestandteil der Abo-Auflage von Theater der Zeit sowie für die Mitglieder der ASSITEJ Deutschland Einzelheft-Preis: 6 EUR (print oder digital); Abo-Preis: 22 EUR (Deutschland); 30 EUR (außerhalb Deutschlands) Abo-Bestellung und Einzelheft-Bestellung: Theater der Zeit Winsstraße 72, 10405 Berlin, Germany Tel. +49 (0)30 4435 285-12 abo-vertrieb@ theaterderzeit.de, www.theaterderzeit.de Druck und Bindung: PIEREG Druckcenter Berlin GmbH Gefördert durch das