The Movement

The Movement

New movements challenge politics and society. How, where and initiated by whom do they emerge? What changes can they bring about? And what role does art play in this?

‘The Movement’ is a performance for two spectators. It takes place in the office of a large authority or newspaper editorial office, a district town hall or museum. They carry an inconspicuous bag with them. Inside: a theatre machine, including a video monitor, loudspeakers, text documents and various archive objects. ‘The Movement’ turns the respective venue into a theatre and involves the audience in a multimedia conversation: What if this encounter became the starting point of a social and transnational movement?

Press

‘’The Movement’ is the name of the new play that is staged by Mohren and Herbordt for Theater Rampe. There is only two people as spectators, who meet at an agreed place somewhere in Stuttgart. The theatre staff hands them two boxes and lead them into a room inside an office building – could be the town hall, the tax office, state archives, etc. One of the boxes contains devices for reproducing sound and images. On screen the actors Abak Safaei-Rad and Armin Wieser appear. From a timeless perspective they begin to tell the story of the citizens’ movements. They invite the spectators to build a protective tent within the bureaucratic ambience they find themselves in, made of shiny foil, clips, suction cups and strong magnets and to be fastened anywhere in the room. The second box contains objects referring to historical and current movements – the cobblestone, the handbag and the blue stocking as emblems of emancipation, the anarchist pamphlet, a signal whistle… and a simple camera. The spectators who have by now become actively involved are invited to document their activities and research. Is this still theatre? It sure is exciting, an adventure in the city, an invisible, playful conspiracy.‘ Stuttgarter Zeitung, 16.11.2018?

Credits

Artistic direction: Melanie Mohren, Bernhard Herbordt. Video performance: Abak Safaei-Rad, Armin Wieser. Music: Fender Schrade/Linda Wölfel (VOW). Objects: Michael Kleine. Camera, editing: Jochen Gehrung. Research, coordination: Silinee Damsa-Ard. Technical coordination: Michael Schramm. Programming: Robert Läßig. Graphic design: Demian Bern. Editing: Viola van Beek. Photos: Daniela Wolf. Video documentation: Hagen Betzwieser. Production management: ehrliche Arbeit – Freies Kulturbüro.

A production by Herbordt/Mohren in cooperation with Theater Rampe. Supported by the Landesverband Freier Theater Baden-Württemberg e.V. with funds from the Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts Baden-Württemberg, the City of Stuttgart and the Fonds Darstellende Künste e.V.


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