Astrit Ismaili: The First Flower | April 14-15 | SOPHIENSÆLE – Sophiensæle | Independent Theater in Berlin
Astrit Ismaili:
The First Flower
The First Flower
Premiere
The First Flower is a concert-performance which announces the release of Astrit Ismaili’s first solo album produced by The Performance Agency in collaboration with Obsequeen, Lotic, Katu, Colin Self, Nömak, Europa and Mykki Blanco. The lyrics tell the story of the world’s First Flower: a green plant going through a physical and spiritual transition—using beauty and seduction to promote their dissemination, while pioneering in extremely fluid sexual interactions. Queerness is a natural phenomenon within the botanical world, in contrast to the reality of queer communities, who fight for their political existence. All along their poetic journey, The First Flower is confronted with concerns such as beauty standards, gender dysphoria, the commodification of nature and non-binary realities. The music tis characterized by a strong stylistic hybridity: musical theater meets hyperpop and trap, combined with contemporary sound design. Drawing a parallel between the history of flowers and pop culture, the project requalifies contemporary pop aesthetics and demonstrates how creativity can be a strategy to overcome existential limitations; reflecting the artist’s own path.
Darling this started
Hundred million years ago
I know you weren’t here but
There was something wrong with me
Rooted fully into the ground
I could never travel far
Sunwatersoil was not enough
To make me bright to make me
Loved, Love, Loved, Love, Loved, Love, I wanna give you love, We want to be loved.
Excerpt of The First Flower, © Astrit Ismaili 2019
If any questions remain from the following information, please feel free to contact Hannah Aldinger at barrierefreiheit@sophiensaele.com or 030 27 89 00 35. Please note that details may change by the day of the event. Therefore, if you find out after you have purchased your ticket that the performance is no longer accessible to you, you can contact us for a ticket return at ticketing@sophiensaele.com or 030 27 89 00 45 until 5 business days after the event (Monday through Friday between 10am and 6pm).
Duration
- Approx. 50 minutes
Language
- English singing
- English written language (lyrics on screens)
Light
- Concert situation
- There are light changes and the use of strobe lights.
- Each song has its own light atmosphere.
- The lyrics are shown on screens on the wall. They can be read there in English like surtitles.
Sound
- Concert sound
- The songs have different sound qualities. Some tracks are poppier/faster, some have techno beats.
Other effects
- Fog, Haze
- There is a smell in the fog machine.
Audience area
- The grandstand is 80% cushioned seating, the rest is standing room. There are few chairs with backrests. Please note the early boarding if you need a specific seat.
- 2 beanbag seats bookable according to availability
- 2 wheelchair places bookable according to availability
- The audience area is 360° around the stage.
Early boarding
There is the option of early boarding.
Tickets
- Reservations can be made via the ticket telephone at 030 283 52 66, Monday to Friday from 4pm-6pm
- Via the online ticket shop
- At the box office
You can also find more information about accessibility here.
CONCEPT, MUSIC, CREATIVE DIRECTION Astrit Ismaili MUSIC PRODUCTION Europa, Katu, Lotic, Nömak, Obsequeen, Colin Self, Vincent Arp, Tim Roth, Zgjim, Featuring Mykki Blanco MIXING Alexander Bornschein MASTERING Jannis Bentler PERFORMERS Logan Muamba Ndanou, Fabian Reichle CHOREOGRAPHIC ADVICE Vincent Riebeek, Delphine Gaborit SCENOGRAPHY Carolin Gieszner ENGINEER Thibault Hermitte LIGHT DESIGN Veslemøy Rustad Holseter STYLING Natália De Assis Styling assistant Ana Piñero Hair and makeup Ana Lima ARTWORK Ville Vidoe GRAPHIC DESIGN Zgjim Elshani EXECUTIVE PRODUCTION The Performance Agency
A work by Astrit Ismaili, advised and produced by The Performance Agency. Funded by the Upstream: Music X Design grant of the Creative Industries Fund NL and realized in co-production with KW Institute for Contemporary Art and with the support of the Investigation Grant of the Kemmler Foundation (Kemmler Kemmler GmbH). The guest performance as part of Queer Darlings #4 is made possible by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Europe. Media partner: Berlin Art Link, Rausgegangen, Missy Magazine, Siegessäule, tipBerlin, taz.die tageszeitung.
ASTRIT ISMAILI (* in Prishtina, Kosovo) lives and works in Amsterdam. Astrit Ismaili’s performance practice explores the transformational potential of bodies and spaces. Their work proposes bodies that consist of both imaginary and material realities—using alter egos, extensions and wearable music instruments to embody different possibilities for becoming. Through these elements, Ismaili thinks of, about and through the body: as it transforms and is transformed, as it moves, as it makes sound and makes contact, as it extends and exceeds, as it reaches out to and touches the other. Within this practice, the act of singing is used to explore the role of voice in pop culture and in relation to identity politics. Fictional, historical and personal references are used as a material to build worlds and incarnate new icons. Astrit Ismaili graduated with an MA in Performance from the DasArts in Amsterdam. They have recently opened Manifesta 14, Pristina (2022) and Athens Biennale (2021) with their work and shown further pieces at KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin (2022); Neues Museum, Nuremberg (2022); Impulstanz, Vienna (2021); Salzburger Kunstverein 2020; Oude Kerk, Amsterdam (2019); Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (2018); SALTS, Basel (2018); Kunstverein Amsterdam, among others.