The “New Audience Formation through Queer Cross-Genre Perfor- mances” lab brings together a diverse group of queer artists from various disciplines, exploring how audience formation might look if institutional and independent spaces were to turn towards queer practices, themes and structures.
How audiences can be diversified and what this change could mean so- cio-politically? The visibility of queer artists in conservative, patriarchal performance venues could bring about a change that could extend to other ar- eas. For example, the LAB has engaged with performance practices that com- bine drag and contemporary dance with classical opera (e.g., Rusalka at
the Stuttgart State Opera or DRAG & DRUM at Ballhaus Ost). It examines how an audience is newly formed there and how an exchange between differ- ent social strata could be promoted. Through speculative workshops, lectures, and by attending a drag show, the artists of the LAB have repeatedly addressed the questions of how queer artistic practices can diversify the audience and break societal norms. The diversity of the group, in particu- lar, stood out as a central element of diversification. In an open studio, the public had the opportunity to attend the discussions.
Conducted in late August 2023 and hosted at Uferstudios: Heizhaus in Berlin.
Facilitated by:
Shlomi Moto Wagner and Heinrich Horwitz with The House of Mazeltov and friends.
With:
Heinrich Horwitz, Frida Giulia Franceschini, Judy LaDivina,
Ariel Nil Levy, Kinga Ötvös, Valerie Renay, Sarah Saviet, Shlomi Moto Wagner, Rosa Wernecke, Tomer Zirkilevich
Guest contributors:
Tunay Altay + The House of Blænk
Photographs: © Dorothea Tuch
Part of “Bundesweite Artist Labs,” an initiative of the Fonds Darstellende Künste. This funding was made pos- sible through the contributions of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media as a part of the NEUSTART KULTUR program.
