Impulse Theater Festival
Düsseldorf, Cologne and Mülheim an der Ruhr
13— 23 June 2019
Düsseldorf, Cologne and Mülheim an der Ruhr
13— 23 June 2019
The Impulse Theatre Festival has been the leading platform for independent theatre in the German-speaking countries for over thirty years. Every year NRW KULTURsekretariat's Impulse Festival presents exemplary works that have been produced outside the classic system of city theatres that test, expand and question the medium of theatre. Many of the artistic innovations that have brought theatre in the German language alive in recent decades – such as Rimini Protokoll, René Pollesch and She She Pop – have been seen at Impulse, being discovered there by the theatre world and the press and gaining an international reputation.
The Festival’s Artistic Director for 2018 to 2020 is the curator, dramaturg and academic Haiko Pfost. Under his leadership, the festival could already continue to extend its role as the meeting point for the independent theatre from all German-speaking countries while simultaneously generating enthusiasm for independent theatre among new audiences. The three core programmes — Showcase, Academy and City Project — rotate each year between the three partner institutions FFT Düsseldorf, studiobühneköln and Ringlokschuppen Ruhr.
Showcase
The showcase presents a chance to see outstanding productions of the past year and the most interesting newcomers of the season: these are challenging works that represent a plurality of diverse theatre forms and aesthetics and in that plurality epitomize independent theatre. Assessment is carried out by the six-strong Impulse jury that meets once a year to discuss suggestions for the programme. It consists of Impulse’s artistic team, regional scouts and a representative from the audience of its showcase partner.
Academy
The Impulse Academy regards itself as forum that is key to understanding the identity of independent theatre. Workshops, lectures, panels and experimental formats will consider issues arising out of independent theatre-making practice: its annual chosen themes cover aesthetic and political questions as well as financial and production matters. The Impulse Academy is aimed primarily at professional theatremakers, students, producers and academics but does not exclude interested members of the public.
City Project
The city project combines urgent issues of our time with a local context — a working method within the performing arts developed by independent theatre. It is particularly accessible in terms of form and encourages a wide audience to sample independent theatre.
Programme, info[a]impulsefestival.de
Haiko Pfost, Artistic Director
Wilma Renfordt, Dramaturg
Katalin Erdődi, Direction ACADEMY #1
Jascha Sommer and Sina-Marie Schneller (Cheers for Fears), Direction ACADEMY #2, akademie[a]impulsefestival.de
Production, produktion[a]impulsefestival.de
Armin Leoni, Production Management
Theresa Heußen, Production Assistant
Anna Bründl, Production Management CITY PROJECT, stadtprojekt[a]impulsefestival.de
Zsolt Káldy / Teresa Künstler / Sina-Marie Schneller, Production Management ACADEMY
Maribel Marquez, Production Assistant ACADEMY
Luzie Barzen / Laron Janus / Anna Jungfer / Melissa Müller / Steven Sander / Daniela Sopala, Production Assistants SHOWCASE
Lea Peter, Kathrin Sonnenschein, Fatima Sonntag, Laurin Thiesmeyer, Production Assistants CITY PROJECT
Johannes Weckl, Venue design
Technical Director
Nino Petrich
Ticketing
Esther Schneider, Coordination
Press, presse[a]impulsefestival.de
Julia Kretschmer, Press / Marketing
Sina Langner, Press Assistant
Editorial team
Patricia Maurer, Editor-in-chief
Katharina Sacken, Proof-reading
David Tushingham, Translation
Design
V2A.NET, Essen
NRW KULTURsekretariat
Dr. Christian Esch, Director
Christina Schröder, Administrative Manager
Martin Maruschka, Press
Impulse Panel 2019
Wolfgang Kralicek, Scout Austria
Barbara Odenthal, representative of the audience, FFT Düsseldorf
Gabriele Oßwald, Scout Southern Germany
Haiko Pfost, Artistic Director Impulse Theater Festival
Wilma Renfordt, Dramaturg Impulse Theater Festival
Barbara Weber, Scout Switzerland
Wolfgang Kralicek is a theatre critic and journalist. He studied Theatre Studies at the Universität Wien and was Cultural Editor of the weekly magazine ‘Falter’ (1995–2015) and Chief Editor of the magazine ‘News’ (2015–2017). Wolfgang Kralicek writes regularly for ‘Theater heute’ magazine and the ‘Süddeutsche Zeitung’. He has been a jury member for the Berlin Theatertreffen, co-juror for the Hamburger Autorentage and a member of the selection committee for the Mülheimer Theatertage. Since 2017 he has been a member of the city of Vienna’s Advisory Board on Theatre, Dance and Performance. A selection of Wolfgang Kralicek’s theatre texts have been published in the ‘Stück für Stück’ series (Abo Verlag, Vienna).
Barbara Odenthal is a senior school teacher of English, Education and Literature in Neuss and a member of the NRW’s State Association of Theatre in Schools. As part of her school theatre work she has co-operated with Schlosstheater Moers, for example in NRW’s state-wide Programme for Culture and Schools. From 1999 to 2000 she gained experience in improvisation with director Graham Fletcher-Cook at Jacksons Lane Arts Centre in London and worked on his production ‘Brotherhood’. She has worked as a scout for the FFT Düsseldorf since 2013 and is the audience panel member for the 2019 edition of the Impulse Theater Festival.
Gabriele Oßwald is a visual and performance artist. After working in industry and an active involvement in the trade union movement, she has been a practicing artist since the beginning of the 1990s. In 2001 together with three colleagues she founded the Künstlerhaus zeitraumexit e.V. in Mannheim, which she ran from 2007 to 2016. The team there devised projects including the Festival Wonder of the Prairie and showcases for emerging talents such as ‘Wilsonstraße’ and ‘frisch eingetroffen’. Gabriele Oßwald has been working once again as a freelance curator and artist since 2017, and as a project manager.
Haiko Pfost trained as an industrial manager and studied Theatre, Religious Studies and Psychology in Berlin. He has worked as a festival dramaturg for the Festival Theaterformen in Braunschweig and Hanover, steirischer herbst in Graz, the International Schillertage in Mannheim and was a member of the selection panel for the Festival Politik im Freien Theater in Dresden. Together with Thomas Frank he founded the brut — Koproduktionshaus in Vienna in 2007 and ran the organization until 2013. From 2014 to 2017 he worked as a freelance curator, dramaturg, lecturer and consultant. Haiko Pfost is Artistic Director of the Impulse Theater Festival for its three editions from 2018 to 2020.
Wilma Renfordt studied Theatre, Art History and Literature at the Free University, Berlin. As a dramaturg she has been member of the theatre company copy & waste, has worked on exhibitions and texts at Friedrich von Borries’ “Projektbüro” in Berlin and as a freelance dramaturg and writer for institutions such as the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, Gessnerallee Zürich and Sophiensæle Berlin. She was dramaturg for the 2017 edition of the steirischer herbst in Graz and has been dramaturg of the Impulse Theater Festival since 2017.
Barbara Weber studied Theatre Directing at the University of Hamburg’s Institute of Theatre, Music Theatre and Film. She has worked as a theatre director since 2001 and won the Fonds Darstellende Künste’s award at the 2005 Impulse Theater Festival. From 2008 to 2013 she was the Director of the Theater Neumarkt in Zürich together with Rafael Sanchez. Since 2013 she has worked as a freelance curator, director and producer. She was most recently Artistic Director of the long-term festival ZH-REFORMATION. CH and responsible for the talks programme at KUNST:SZENE Zürich 2018.
Veranstalter
gemeinsam mit den Städten Düsseldorf, Köln und Mülheim an der Ruhr.
Partnerhäuser
Gefördert durch
Projekt- und Gastspielförderung durch
AKADEMIE #1 wird gefördert durch die Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung, das Goethe-Institut, das Internationale Besucherprogramm des NRW KULTURsekretariats, Pro Helvetia, Schweizer Kulturstiftung und die Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung.
AKADEMIE #2 ist eine Koproduktion mit Cheers for Fears. Cheers for Fears wird gefördert vom Ministerium für Kultur und Wissenschaft des Landes NRW und von der Kunststiftung NRW.
Das STADTPROJEKT „Angstraum Köln“ wird gefördert durch die Kunststiftung NRW, die Sparkasse KölnBonn und die Stadt Köln.
Die Gastspiele GREAT DEPRESSIONS, HAPPYOLOGY — TEARS OF JOY, WHITE LIMOZEEN, ZWEITER VERSUCH ÜBER DAS TURNEN und ZWISCHEN DEN SÄULEN werden unterstützt durch das NATIONALE PERFORMANCE NETZ Gastspielförderung Theater und Tanz, gefördert von der Beauftragten der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien, sowie die Kultur- und Kunstministerien der Länder.
Das Gastspiel EF_FEMININITY wird gefördert durch Pro Helvetia, Schweizer Kulturstiftung und das Goethe-Institut.
Das Gastspiel WITNESS wird gefördert durch die NRW-Gastspielförderung Tanz und Theater.
Alle Übersetzungen im Rahmen des Impulse Theater Festivals mit freundlicher Unterstützung des Goethe-Instituts.
Veranstaltungspartner
Kultur- und Medienpartner
Auszeichnung