We are happy to announce that, from July 2020, Mateusz Szymanówka will take over the artistic direction of Tanztage Berlin as well as the position of Sophiensæles dance dramaturg. An independent advisory board comprising Prof. Nik Haffner (artistic director of Hochschulübergreifendes Zentrum Tanz Berlin), Dr. Pirkko Husemann (artistic director of Schwankhalle Bremen), Olivia Hyunsin Kim (choreographer), Sebastian Matthias (choreographer) and the artistic direction and management team of Sophiensæle decided on the assignment.
MATEUSZ SZYMANÓWKA (*1988) is a dramaturge and curator in the field of choreography, dance and performance. He studied cultural, theatre and dance studies in Warsaw and Berlin. As curator he has developed presentational frameworks for experimental choreography and performance and has realised local and international projects, festivals and exhibitions. As dramaturge, he has worked primarily with a young generation of Berlin- and Warsaw-based choreographers and performance makers, whose artistic practice is rooted in feminism and queer theory. He has worked with and for institutions such as Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art, Nowy Teatr and Teatr Studio in Warsaw, Art Stations Foundation in Poznan and HAU Hebbel am Ufer and is currently taking care of the emerging artist’s platform Introducing… of the Performing Arts Festival Berlin. Furthermore, since 2017 he has been working closely with the team of the independent queer culture festival POMADA in Warsaw.
Since its foundation in 1996 by Barbara Friedrich and Benjamin Schälike, TANZTAGE BERLIN has focused on the discovery, promotion and presentation of young choreographers in Berlin. As a platform for the next generation of young choreographers, premieres and first performances are at heart of the programme. Young, talented artists are given the opportunity to develop, produce and present their projects to the public. In cooperation with various partner organisations, the Tanztage Berlin discover, promote and present new trends in contemporary dance with a variety of choreographic approaches.
The next edition of TANZTAGE BERLIN will take place in January 2021 at Sophiensæle. The call for applications will be published in May 2020.