Stammtisch

Sitting at a big table and coming together in conversation: The Stammtisch has become an established meeting point during the Theater Spektakel to share ideas and insights. Every evening, the table is chaired by one or more hosts. They come from different backgrounds: artists, activists or politically and socially engaged individuals. Their thoughts on current social issues are the starting point for the table talks and expand the topics and questions the international artists bring to Zurich with their works. Our hosts kick off the discussion, everything else is up to you. (zts)

50 years of Schwarzenbach initiative – a collective remembrance culture to this day. Jour fixe 1 + 2

with Kollektiv Schwarzenbach Komplex

Fri 19 & Sat 20 August
Language: German

The Schwarzenbach Komplex has collected memories of racism and resistance since the introduction of migrant workers and the immigration system in Switzerland. On two occasions, the collective continues the remembrance work together with the audience to create a many-voiced, anti-racist space against oblivion and for justice. The participants are requested to bring along memories, pictures, videos, music pieces and objects significant to their resistance. 

Both table talks are open for anyone interested and can also be attended separately. For questions, please mail to: info@schwarzenbach-komplex.ch

More information on Schwarzenbach Komplex

Activism from Chile – Feminist empowerment in the public space

with colectivo LASTESIS

Sun 21 August
Language: English

The hymn «Un Violador en tu camino» (A Rapist in Your Path) by colectivo LASTESIS and the accompanying publicly performed group choreography immediately went viral in 2019. The event marked an important point in a wave of worldwide protests against femicide and partriarchal violence. The three co-founders of the collective, Sibila Sotomayor, Daffne Valdés and Paula Cometa, share their experiences of the past years within the feminist resistance and open a discussion against fear and the possibilities to resist publicly. 

colectivo LASTESIS at the Zürcher Theater Spektakel: Workshop & Performance, Talking on Water

Punk as protest – «For Freedom. Yours and ours!»

with Pussy Riot

Mon 22 August
Language: English

In Russia, having an opinion that differs from that of the state can cost you your freedom or even your life. This was recently the case for Kremlin critic Ilya Yashin. He publicly commented on the war of aggression against Ukraine and has now been sentenced to prison for «spreading false information about the Russian military». This danger has not only existed since the war of aggression; the resistance against the regime is becoming increasingly dangerous. One of the best-known voices of resistance is the feminist band Pussy Riot, protesting against Putin with punk. With their concerts, they show solidarity with Ukraine and set a sign against «the general indifference towards war». In conversation with the band, it becomes clear why this is not an option and what their protest has to do with Europe.

Information on the concert by Pussy Riot

Access to justice for refugees

with AsyLex

Tue 23 August
Language: German

The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine forces many people to flee their country and calls back the topic of flight and expulsion to the collective mind. Even though it is a human right to take refuge and asylum in other countries, the actual process is often complicated and access to supporting legal representation often insufficient. Joëlle Spahni, Nathalie Vainio and Mei Yi Lew from the organisation AsyLex offer various areas of expertise to support people seeking asylum in Switzerland and talk about this important work at the Stammtisch. They explain how the asylum process works in Switzerland, what challenges it presents and how a chatbot can be of help to fleeing people. 

Poetry in Cuba: no luxury but resistance

with Martha Luisa Hernández Cadenas

Wed 24 August
Language: English

The Cuba-based artist Martha Luisa Hernández Cadenas, aka Martica Minipunto, invites to a discussion on the potential for resistance of poetry and artistic interventions in the public space. Which power can spoken words or moving bodies develop in inappropriate spaces – spaces which are regulated and censored? Which risks does one take when becoming visible? Martha Luisa Hernández Cadenas shares her thoughts and questions and opens a discussion on experiences on the streets of Havanna and Zurich and on how exactly the public space is to be defined. 

Information on the performance «No soy unicorno» by Martha Luisa Hernández Cadenas

My body as capital – politicised bodies and the experience of «otherness»

with Tiziano Cruz

Thu 25 August
Language: English

The title of his work «Soliloquy», presented at this year’s festival, means monologue; yet on this evening the Argentinian artist Tiziano Cruz invites us to a dialogue: What does it mean to leave behind parts of one’s own identity in order to fight from afar for the rights of those left behind? What does it mean to move as a politicised body in a mostly white, contemporary art scene? Based on his experiences in Indigenous, Andean communities in South America, Tiziano Cruz also inquires the experiences of othering and marginalisation of bodies in the Swiss society.

Information on the performance «Soliloquy (I woke up and hit my head against the wall)» by Tiziano Cruz

Journalism is our vocation!«Perspektiven» on the air 

with participants of the workshop «Radio Landiwiese»

Fri 26 August
Language: German

The project «Perspektiven» by radio school klipp+klang aims to create networks with experienced journalists with a refugee and migration background. Through the collective creation of journalistic content and the passing on of knowledge within the editorial office, the group actively co-creates the Swiss media scene. A part of the editorial staff of «Perspektiven» already went live at last year’s festival. This year, the team has doubled in size. At the Stammtisch, the participants talk about their experiences and their passion for journalism on the air. 

Attend live broadcasts: Sat 27 and Sun 28 August, from 18 to 19 hrs at the main entrance to the festival site or on GDS.FM

Let’s talk about sex… maybe? An artistic approach to language and sex

with Anna Papst

Sat 27 August
Language: German

«Contact wants to be created, sexual contact as well. The question cannot only be: Do you want to? But: What do you want? Tell me exactly!» Those sentences by the queer-feminist sex worker and publicist Kristina Marlen can be heard in the audio piece «Intimate Revolution» by Anna Papst & Mats Staub. For their research, the two artists have followed the tracks of words: They have encountered experts of everyday life when it comes down to talking about sex – and probably have become experts themselves. At the Stammtisch, Anna Papst shares about that research and talks about insights as well as contradictions. And the good thing is: Everybody has a say.

Information on the project «Intime Revolution»

Swiss wrestling – between sport, tradition, gender and state

with Johanna Heusser

Sun 28 August
Language: German

«What is a traditional Swiss sport?» This is one of the questions in the questionnaire for naturalisation of the Canton of Zurich. The answer is: Swiss wrestling! The sport is closely linked to the Swiss national consciousness as well as to tradition and stereotyped body and gender images – and hardly known outside of Switzerland. Following extended research, the choreographer Johanna Heusser has recently created the dance piece «Dr Churz, dr Schlungg und dr Böös» on Swiss wrestling, which she presents on the Zentralbühne at the festival. At the Stammtisch, she shares her knowledge about wrestling as well as the strategies with which she has acquired the sport from a queer-feminist perspective.

The Zentralprogramm at a glance (including information on «Dr Churz, dr Schlungg und dr Böös»)

The body as a manifestation of resistance and solidarity with political prisoners

with Igor Shugaleev

Mon 29 August
Language: English

In the course of political protests, people are disappearing worldwide. They are arrested, imprisoned or killed. In many cases, they cannot be contacted and friends and relatives are only left with hope. The exiled Belarus performer Igor Shugaleev fights this paralysing state with his body. In collaboration with the artist Sergey Shabohin, he has developed the activist performance «375 0908 2334», during which he exposes himself to a method of torture the protesters in his country are threatened with. At the Stammtisch, he shares his activist perspective on the continuing protests in Belarus and pursues the question how on-site solidarity is possible with the political prisoners in his country.

Information on the performance «375 0908 2334» by Igor Shugaleev

Deep Sea Mining – the oceans as a competitive resource

with Silke Huysmans & Hannes Dereere

Tue 30 August
Language: English

The deep sea is one of the last regions on this planet which remains largely uncharted and untouched – yet the interest to exploit and capitalise on its mineral resources is immense. Silke Huysmans and Hannes Dereere have elaborated a documentary theatre based on their long-time research. At the Stammtisch, they invite the participants to talk about the potentials and consequences as well as on the protagonists of deep sea mining and cast a light on a practice taking place hidden from public view yet having an enormous influence on our ecosystem.

Information on «Out of the Blue» by Silke Huysmans & Hannes Dereere / CAMPO

Why a feminist perspective on economy is needed

with Economiefeministe (Mirjam Aggeler and Linda Zobrist)

Wed 31 August
Language: German

We all are dependent on the care and work of other people – around 70 percent of all work in Switzerland is so-called care and supply work. Only a small part of it gets paid: in healthcare, assistance work and in education. The greater part of this work is unpaid and takes place in households: childcare, caring for relatives and domestic work. This work is often made invisible and, according to gross domestic product (GDP), it is neither value-adding nor economically productive – it is simply ignored, as are the people who do most of those jobs. Mirjam Aggeler and Linda Zobrist of the platform Economiefeministe open a feminist perspective on economy and society with the intention to change those grievances and to focus on care work and the work of women.

Collective theatre work as a vital resource – an intercultural perspective from East and Central Africa

with Carole Umulinga Karemera

Tue 1 September
Language: English

Ruanda, Burundi, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya and Belgium – the performance «The Children of Amazi» was created in those countries and is now on tour worldwide. What does it mean to create theatre in different countries and continents? What needs to be translated in addition to the different languages? And which bridges can the joint play on stage build between different cultures and realities? Based on those questions and her experiences as a performer, director and manager of Ishyo Arts Center, Carole Umulinga Karemera hosts a conversation on what role the arts can play in society.

Information on «The Children of Amazi» by SMALL CITIZENS

Surrogate motherhood for everyone? – Perspectives on reproductive justice

with Elena Brodeala & Agnes Kandlbinder

Fri 2 September
Language: German/English

While surrogate motherhood is prohibited in Switzerland, the practice is considered altruistic and is commercially permitted in other countries. Places such as California in the US, Ukraine or India have become popular destinations. In 2019, 49 children born by surrogate mothers abroad were reported in Switzerland, but the actual number is likely to be higher. The lawyer Elena Brodeala and the queer-feminist ethicist Agnes Kandlbinder are researching reproductive justice as well as the ethical implications and the legal framework of surrogacy and other topics in assisted reproduction in the interdisciplinary research project «Human Reproduction Reloaded» at the University of Zurich. At the Stammtisch, they share their knowledge and open a conversation on a topic which is often only discussed in private.

Democracy, religion, identity – in conversation the plural society is kept alive

with Hannan Salamat

Sat 3 September
Language: German

How does a plural democracy look like? Where do complex and hybrid identities stand in society? Who is allowed to represent minorities in public? And who is a minority after all? How do we deal with ambiguity and contradiction in a plural society? Those are the complex questions the cultural and religious scholar Hannan Salamat investigates at the Zürcher Institut für Interreligiösen Dialog. Dedicated to keep this exchange alive, Salamat invites participants to engage in those questions during the last Stammtisch.