Dancing? In THIS economy?
The three-part publication Sophiensæle Forever uses the triple anniversary of the venue, theater and Tanztage Berlin as a venture point to reflect on the (im)material conditions of artistic production. We know that art is work. And yet the myth persists to this day that love of art is drive enough. This is felt most acutely by those who work with limited resources and use their own bodies as material and medium, such as the emerging choreographers who have been given a platform by Tanztage for 30 years.

The first part of this series is dedicated to this very topic. In her autobiographical and poetic text No Arrival, or, goodbye yellow brick road: on The Emerging Artist and what comes next, Melanie Jame Wolf suggests that those who are at the beginning of their careers have a special sensitivity to the contradictions of their times. According to Wolf, the tension between artistic practice and the art market is starkly evident in the current climate of austerity.

In Body-Friendly Dance Floors, Ana Vujanović describes a world that calls itself “free”—just like our Freie Szene—while actual freedom over one’s own body remains unevenly distributed. Not everyone survives the precariousness demanded by artistic work, she writes, which we disguise as mobility, freedom and flexibility, driven by supposed love and passion.

At last, in Tanztage Berlin: 30 Years of Berlin Dance History, Elena Philipp charts the evolution of the festival—as a constantly underresourced landmark event for the city that has consistently positioned itself in support of artists. Shaped by the diligence and tenacity of its artistic directors, the festival continues to thrive by insisting that artistic work requires spaces that offer more than mere permeability: it needs attention, care and time.

The first part of our anniversary publication will be available online and in print from January 8, 2026.