The Arts & Creativity

September 2, 2014 0

Interview: Ali for (and from) Germany

In the wake of Germany's World Cup victory, much has been said about a renewed sense of German patriotism and its implications. While some have feared a connection to Germany's dark past, others have welcomed the discourse as a chance to shape a new sense of belonging within the country's evolving demographics. We've already written something about it here. But what a discussion on national identity means on the personal level is another story. Or rather many stories. Here's one... [Read More!]

May 30, 2014 1

Interview: the Klezmer Gentiles

International artists in Berlin occupy a semi-privileged position, able to ask critical questions of society without being publicly rebuked. An example of such an artist is Soliman Lawrence. Soli has been photographing the memorialization of Jewish culture in Poland for years, following the tracks of a new form of engagement with the past, as enacted by a more recent generation of Poles. In contrast to Poland, Germany now has its fair share of Jews. What might this mean for memory and its rituals?... [Read More!]

March 19, 2014 1

Review: “Schwarz gemacht” and the White Audience

One attends a play about an Afro-German living in the years of Nazism and Jim Crow not because of the dramaturgy. One buys the ticket because of the topic's near absence in the German discourse. This is not a review of the play, but rather a continuation of the discussion with the cast that followed. As one of the cast-members remarked, it all comes down to audience: "Black folks probably wouldn't go to the theater to see this play in the U.S., let alone have enough money for the ticket. And here, we have a white audience. So, who are we really talking to here? Who is seeing this play?"... [Read More!]

March 7, 2014 3

Interview: Three Dimensions of Integration

It's easy (and admittedly amusing) to reduce expats to stereotypes, as if we all neatly fall into one or the other category based on which country we hail from, what we do for a living, or where we party and eat brunch. Reality is always more nuanced and multi-dimensional. Dare we even say, interesting?... [Read More!]

February 11, 2014 0

Rave: the Political Berlinale

The festival of the golden bear invites the local to become a voyeur and thereby, to recall the headlines, the paroles, the debates, the sagas of the last year - to make meaning of images and thus to make sense of things, or, at least, to just make some sense. In the spirit of the critical viewer and in celebration of themes close to Berlin migration politics, I give you this rave of timely films and the 3 local contexts that make them and this Berlinale so special... [Read More!]

December 20, 2013 0

Happy Weekend Review: An Old-New Christmas Market

Let's just come right out with it: It's hard to beat Christmas in Germany. Glühwein, cookies, classic lights, decorations strewn across homes and street corners, a calendar that expects, nay, requires you eat a chocolate per day... it's simply wonderful. Though I grew up in the US, my family celebrated Christmas the Teutonic way. I have more than fond memories of hiding the Buttergebäck and Lebkuchen in the laundry room from our Opa so he wouldn't devour them in one sitting, ripping open a human-size Adventskalendar in the course of one night made by our Oma... [Read More!]

October 5, 2013 0

Happy Weekend: Will the True Berliners Please Stand Up

English Theatre Berlin's new piece by Daniel Brunet asks the hot question, 'Who is a real Berliner?'. 'Echter Berliner!!! Ihr nicht fuck you' is a documentary theater production which addresses the curious tension between expats and immigrants, as if these categories were ever clear or even exclusive. Putting the product of 60 interviews on stage is brilliant, hanging prejudices out to dry when the last place we need them is in the camp of the outsiders... [Read More!]

August 13, 2013 0

Reviewing the Rave: “We are the We”

We're so used to talking all the time that words tend to lose their effect. Especially when the talking is predominantly happening in one direction, as it so often does in immigration discourse. The Migrantas organization is unleashing an alternate voice within immigrant women in Germany that is arguably just as powerful: their artistic creativity... [Read More!]

June 18, 2013 2

Review: Become a German (in just under 650 hours)

You must clean up after your dog. You must ride your bike in the right direction of the bike lane, recites a Russian student. The audience chuckles. First work, then... chants the teacher. The audience groans. Do you know any examples of German humor? asks the teacher. Uhhh, fumbles the Japanese student. 10 seconds go by. I'm still thinking, he mutters and scratches his head. The audience roars... [Read More!]

June 14, 2013 1

Happy Weekend: Breakfast with Korea, Supper with Afghanistan

Tomorrow is the All Nations Festival: an open house to many of the city's embassies, consulates, and cultural centers. Get ready for free food, dance performances, calligraphy workshops, language lessons, and interesting tales to this year's theme of "superstition" from the following participating countries: Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Bolivia, China, Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Iraq, Yemen, Korea, Malawi, Malaysia, Malta, Nepal, Palestine, South Sudan, Chad, Venezuela (and the Konrad-Adenauer Stiftung). It is no coincidence that many of the countries registered have faced bad press or sweeping generalizations as of late, no coincidence that they are opening their doors and hoping to share something with their neighbors... [Read More!]

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